This is it, the climax! How will this story end?
And what has become of Light and Sayu!? Find out now!
Again, please review and enjoy!
Death Note: Chapter 10
5 Minutes earlier…
"If even one of these demands are not met, then Sayu dies. It's your choice L: Your life or Sayu's? Which will it be?"
However, Light didn't get his answer. For at that moment, Sayu kicked her brother hard in the groin, making him yell in pain. She then tackled him to the floor, making him drop the pen and notebook from his right hand. She then stepped on his left wrist, whose hand held her phone, and made him let it go.
As Sayu smashed her phone with her foot, she saw a small piece of paper falling out of Light's now broken watch. Acting quickly, she kicked the notebook so that it slid beneath the door and out of the room, grabbed the pen and paper, and backed herself to the door.
Once his pain had subsided, Light slowly got up, aching where his sister had attacked him. The look on his face made Sayu quiver, although she felt sorry for hurting him.
"Dammit Sayu. I can't believe… you just did that… to me." Light said in a soft but vicious voice.
"You slapped me, so now we're even." Sayu retorted.
Finally back on his feet, Light began to laugh. It was the same crazy laugh Sayu heard the night she learned how insane he had become. She knew what she had to do now.
"Even? No… we're nowhere near even!" Light shouted as he rubbed his wrist. "You betrayed me, worked with L against me, and now I'm under house arrest because of you! On top of all that, you had the audacity to assault the God of the new world!"
Sayu gripped her pen tightly in her hand. "Stop calling yourself that! You're nothing more than a human with a notebook that should never have been dropped here in the first place! You have no right to decide who lives and who dies!"
"I have the power to change the world! That gives me the right!" Light countered.
Sayu couldn't have disagreed more.
"Just because you can kill people, doesn't mean that you should Light. I thought you were better than this, but after seeing how far you've gone…" Sayu then held up the paper and pen she was holding, which Light finally noticed. He quickly looked at his watch to see that it was broken and missing a small slip of paper. Light chuckled maliciously.
"What are you going to do, Sayu? Write my name down? That's laughable! You're not capable of killing your own brother!" He said, confident that she would not go through with it.
"That night, I promised myself I'd never use the Death Note, no matter what. Today… I'm breaking that promise. I just can't live in a world where my brother is a murderer."
Without another word, Sayu quickly wrote on the paper. Seeing this stunned him.
"What? You actually did it?! How could you?!" He shouted in disbelief.
Instead of answering, Sayu threw the paper down on the floor at Light's feet. The writing was facedown. He bent down and, as he picked it up and read the name, he was even more shocked. The name written down wasn't his.
"You… you wrote down your own name?! Why?!" Light yelled.
As he looked back at Sayu, he saw she was looking at her own watch, silently counting down the seconds.
"I just told you. I can't live in a world where you kill. If being Kira means that much to you, then I want you to know what it has just costed you." She said calmly.
Light couldn't believe this was happening. Sure, he was angry at Sayu for her betrayal, but he still cared for her. He never wanted his family to get involved in this at all.
"Sayu, why?" He asked, starting to sound chocked up. "You could've killed me and Kira would be no more! Why take your own life?!" He demanded. Sayu looked up and, surprisingly smiled.
"I can never be like you, Light. I'm no genius, nor can I take another person's life. I want you to live your life knowing that Kira has forced your sister into this. However…" With 10 seconds left, she gave her last words.
"I believe the Light I've known my whole life is still in there somewhere. I want him to know that, despite all the wrong he's done, I still love him." Sayu then started to shed tears the same time her brother did. "Goodbye Light."
"Sayu…" Light barely said above a whisper as the last second had passed.
Instantly, Sayu dropped her pen and clutched her chest where her heart was. Light watched with horror as his sister ached with pain and fell to her knees. With one last look at Light, she gasped and fell facedown on the floor. Sayu Yagami moved no more.
"Well, that was pretty dramatic." Commented Ryuk, but Light didn't respond. He stood there, not believing what he was seeing. His sister, dead? Tears then ran down his face as he too fell to his knees.
'How could this have happened? It shouldn't have happened! Not my sister!' Light's vision blurred from his tears. "Sayu…please, wake up. Wake up! SAYU!"
She didn't so much as twitch. Unable to hold back any longer, Light cried.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but the next thing Light knew, his bedroom door had been forced open and several people surrounded him with their guns pointing at him. He looked to see his father, looking like his world had fallen apart.
"Oh god, Light. What have you done?" Soichiro asked despairingly. Light shook his head violently.
"N-No dad, it's not what you think! I-I didn't kill Sayu! She did it herself!" He confessed loudly.
However, no one seemed to believe him.
"Don't give any of that bullcrap Light! It's not working!" Raye retorted.
"Sayu isn't the type of person to commit suicide! It's just another lie you want everyone to believe!" Naomi shouted in agreement.
"It's the truth, I swear! Sayu took a piece of the notebook and wrote her own name down! 40 seconds later, she… d-died of a heart attack! I'm not making this up!" Light pleaded in despair.
"That's what he saw alright." Ryuk said, gaining everyone's attention. L and the others nearly jumped when they saw the Shinigami; it was their first time seeing him. 'So, they can all see me, huh? I guess each of them touched a part of the notebook at some point.' Ryuk thought with amusement.
Behind his mask, L stared at Ryuk with astonished eyes. 'So this is Ryuk. He's exactly like Sayu described. To think creatures like him actually exist…' The rest of the Task Force had similar thoughts as they gazed upon the Shinigami.
"I gotta say though, it was definitely entertaining… watching Light and his sister going at each others' throats, both figuratively and literally. I never knew that she had such fighting spirit. Too bad she had to go out like that. I wanted the fun to last longer…" But Light had finally heard enough.
"SHUT UP! STOP TALKING ABOUT MY SISTER LIKE THAT, RYUK! JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!" Light roared. Ryuk decide to back off after hearing Light like that.
"Okay, fine. Not another word outta me." He mumbled. Light then stared around at the people surrounding him, looking pathetic. He looked like a man who had just lost everything.
"Believe me, I never wanted my sister dead! NEVER!" He begged.
"That wasn't the impression I got from our chat on the phone." Light looked to see the white shirted man wearing a mask. His voice was a little muffled, but he still recognized it. "You… you're L?" he asked weakly.
"I am. From what I understand, you threatened to kill your own sister if I didn't comply with your requests." L said calmly as he picked up the paper with Sayu's name on it.
Light looked down and clenched his fists in anger.
"I f-figured you didn't want Sayu dead, so I knew you would cooperate. But I, I never expected Sayu to…" Light couldn't bring himself to finish. He just stared at his sister's body in complete anguish.
"I just… can't believe she's… gone. My little sister… d-dead." He covered his face with his hands and cried earnestly again. It was just too much for Light to bear. He felt he didn't deserve to live anymore, not after this.
"Mr. Yagami, take your daughter's body downstairs." L instructed. Reluctantly, Soichiro gently lifted up Sayu's body and walked quietly out of the room.
"You're here to arrest me, right?" He asked through his hands after a little while. "Don't bother. Just give me the notebook, and I'll kill myself!"
"Why would you say such a thing?!" A stunned Matsuda asked.
"Sayu said she wanted me to live knowing what had costed me as Kira. It was her! But I can't live knowing that… I drove her to do it! I can't!"
"I doubt your sister would have wanted that." L said. "But there may be another way."
"Like what?" Light choked through his hands.
"You could forget." Light lowered his hands and stared up at L like he didn't get it.
"I understand that if a human gives up ownership of their Death Note, then that person loses all their memories of it and what they did when it was in their possession. If you were to give up your notebook, then you could forget your involvement in Sayu's death. That way, you could blame Kira but not yourself. Would you prefer that?" L offered.
"But… How would that affect my arrest?" Light asked, confused.
"It wouldn't, because there would be no arrest. The only people that know the truth are in this house. They all agreed to cover it up, despite your past wrong doings. You can go back to being Light Yagami, a young genius with a promising future in law enforcement. You could then live out your life, fighting crime in the name of your sister. That, I think, sounds better than the alternative. Wouldn't you agree?"
Light appeared to actually be considering it. It would indeed be a blessing to forget that he was Kira, who did indeed force Sayu's hand. Still, notebook or no notebook, he could never forget his sister's death.
"How…can this be explained… to my mother?" Light weakly asked.
"Leave that to me and your father. True, she will be devastated with the loss of her daughter, but she won't blame you for it." L said. With that, Light had one more question.
"Why would you do this? Why not just arrest me like you always planned too?" L hesitated before giving his reply.
"Your parents had just lost one child. It would be too cruel to deprive them of another, especially if that person can be saved."
Light was silent for a long while. He looked down at the spot where Sayu had fallen before being taken. His family would no doubt never be whole again. It would be up to him to try to make them proud… to make his departed sister proud.
"Sayu said she believed her brother was still alive within Kira. Maybe… she was right." Light said softly as he turned towards Ryuk.
"Ryuk… I'm giving up the notebook." Ryuk, and everyone else, was immensely surprised.
"What? You're serious Light?" The Shinigami asked. Light stared back him with determined eyes, and nodded.
"You heard me Ryuk. I'm relinquishing ownership of the Death Note! Take it back! I never want it in my hands again!"
L and the Task Force were stunned by this.
'He's… actually going through with it.' Naomi thought.
'I didn't think he'd really give it up.' Raye thought.
'Well now… perhaps there is hope for you after all, Light Yagami.' L thought as he watched with amazement. Ryuk, although taken aback, actually chuckled.
"Well then, I guess the fun's over. Later Light." With that, Light collapsed on the floor, unconscious.
The group kept watch over him as Ryuk headed to the hallway.
"Where are you going?" L asked Ryuk as he approached the door.
"What do you think? To get my notebook back. Sayu slid it under the door to the hallway earlier. Once I retrieve it, I'm heading back to the Shinigami Realm." Ryuk answered.
"Not as soon as you think." L said, putting his hand beneath his shirt and pulled out the notebook. Ryuk gasped.
"Hey! When the hell did you get it?" L smiled behind his mask.
"I picked it up and stuffed it in my shirt before Mr. Yagami broke the door open. I've had it on me ever since." Ryuk snorted.
"Sneaky bastard. You wanted the notebook for yourself, huh?" To his surprise, L said no.
"My reasons for taking the notebook are quite different." L said, putting the Death Note back inside his shirt. "But don't worry; you won't be stuck with me for long." He then turned to Naomi.
"Naomi, search Light for other pieces of the notebook before he wakes up." She agreed and checked each of his pockets and pulled out his wallet. She searched it and pulled out a few small pieces of blank paper.
"Got em." She replied as she handed them over to L.
A moment later, Light began to stir.
Everyone tensed up, but L told them to stand down. When he was fully awake, he looked around and widened his eyes as he looked up at L.
"L, why did you tell me I could forget being Kira? Nothing you just said made any sense. I was never Kira in the first place. Why would you say…" He then remembered what happened prior to saying that.
"Sayu… she's dead. Kira… he murdered her didn't he? Did he somehow use me to kill her? Please tell me that I didn't do anything to my sister!" He stared up at L for confirmation. L looked back him and saw anger in his eyes.
'Could he really have lost his memories as Kira? Let us see.' L thought as he began testing him.
"Light, does the name "Ryuk" mean anything to you?" Light blinked in confusion.
"What the hell does that have to do with my sister?" He asked.
"Just answer the question." L said. Light thought it over and quickly replied.
"Well, the only time I've heard that name was in that broadcast you made three days ago. You seemed to imply that it was the name of a Shinigami. But other than that, I don't know anything regarding this Ryuk."
Ryuk chuckled, amused that Light could no longer see or hear him in the room.
"What about the terms "Death Note" or "Shinigami Realm"? Do those sound significant?" L questioned. Light seemed even more confused.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, and I don't care! Tell me about Sayu! Did Kira really use me to murder her?! If so, I have the right to know why!" Light shouted back. He made it clear that he would not be distracted from his sister's fate.
"Look, why bother questioning him? You heard him giving up the notebook, so his memories are as good as gone." Ryuk said, slightly annoyed by the brief questioning session.
'It seems he really doesn't remember.' L then walked up to Light and held out his hand.
"You want to know? Then get up." L said firmly. Without hesitation, Light took L's hand and got back on his feet. "Now come with me. The rest of you, make sure nothing of Kira's is in here." He instructed as he and Light walked out of the bedroom, with Watari and Ryuk behind them.
At the stairs, L stopped and stepped aside. "You first. Your answer lies downstairs." Light nodded hesitantly as he made his way downstairs. He didn't know what to expect, but he knew that if Kira was responsible for his sister's death… he would pay.
As he made it to the ground floor, Light saw his father sitting on the couch. "Dad?" Soichiro got up and walked to up to his son. He stared hard at him.
"Light, do you know what happened to Sayu?" He asked harshly.
Light grimaced from the way his father looked at him.
"It was Kira, wasn't it? I saw her die of a heart attack. That's how Kira kills all his victims, isn't it?" Light's lips quivered. "Please Dad… tell me I had nothing to do with it!" He begged. Before he could answer, another voice had beaten him to it.
"Of course you didn't silly!" Light looked over his father's shoulder and saw something that nearly made his own heart stopped beating… or rather, someone.
Sayu had popped up from the couch, looking as alive as ever. Light couldn't believe his eyes, which had started to moisten up.
"S-Sayu? You're… alive?" He barely got the words out from the emotions he was feeling. Sayu smiled happily at her brother. Without another word, Light ran up to his sister and hugged her so tight that he might never let go. He then cried without restraint.
"I can't believe it. I thought Kira took you away from us, and that… it would be my fault." He said as he cried onto Sayu's shoulder. Sayu hugged him back tightly.
"Trust me Light, the only one out of our lives is Kira." Sayu said as she held him, with their father joining in.
"I'm so sorry for slapping you. I don't know why I did it, but I'm sorry." Light apologized sincerely.
"Don't worry about it, Light. I don't blame you at all." Sayu said softly, enjoying their reunion as a family.
As they were embracing, Sayu looked up and saw L at the foot of the stairs. They exchanged a warm smile as they recalled how this miracle happened…
Flashback
"Let us go over it again. Once Light hears my message in that broadcast, he will no doubt suspect that someone in his family had reported to me behind his back. Being the smart person that he is, it won't take him long to learn that it was Sayu." L said.
"Once he does, he'll make his move." Naomi went on. "Yeah, by taking her hostage." Matsuda said. "And that's when your acting begins." L said, turning to the young girl. "Remember what to do when you get back home?" He asked. Sayu had her answer ready.
"I head straight up to my room and tear off a small bit of paper from one of my books. I'll then stuff it in one of my pockets from then on until Light catches me." She said.
"Exactly, and once Light has apprehended you, you will subtly press your belt buckle to alert Watari that Light is on to you. We then wait a few minutes to call your cellphone, which you will then give to Light when he demands it. We'll be heading to your house by that time. When he is fully distracted by talking to me, that's when you make your move."
"When the real show starts." Raye said.
"Yes. Once Sayu has separated Light from the notebook and taken a small piece of it from him, she'll switch it with the one in her pocket without Light noticing. From that point, Sayu's acting will have to be as convincing as possible. Otherwise, Light will see through it, and it will all be for nothing." Soichiro concluded reluctantly.
"Right. My only concern is Ryuk. According to Sayu, one of the conversations she overheard between him and Light proved very informative. Not only did we learn that Shinigami can see a person's name and lifespan over their head just by looking at their face, but we also learned that it is possible for a human who owns a Death Note to obtain those eyes… at a heavy price." L said.
"Half of that person's remaining lifespan. Talk about steep." Aizawa said heavily.
"Good thing for us that Light turned down the deal, otherwise he'd know right away that Sayu would be faking her death." Ukita added.
"Light might be fooled if Sayu plays her part perfectly, but Ryuk won't be since he'll be able to see her face the whole time. I'm worried whether he will tell Light about the deception." L said, sounding concerned. Sayu seemed sure when she replied.
"I believe he'll keep it to himself. Remember, the very reason Ryuk came to our world in the first place was because he was bored in his world. I have no doubt he'll see my act as very entertaining, and he'll want to see how it will turn out in the end. Telling Light might spoil everything for himself." Sayu reasoned. L seemed reassured.
"Very well then, after Sayu "dies", Light will be so distraught that he could be persuaded to give up his Death Note. Once we have confirmed that his memories of it are indeed gone, then all that's left to do will be to destroy the notebook. I guess that's that. Any questions or concerns?" he asked everyone in the room.
"Yes. I don't like that Sayu will be putting herself in a situation where she could possibly get killed." Soichiro said strongly.
"I know you don't Dad, but I believe in Ryuzaki's plan. I think it will work." Sayu replied just as strongly.
"You sure sound pretty confident for a girl that plans to act out her death." Mogi said. Sayu smiled at him.
"Of course I am, Mr. Mogi. In fact, it's because of Ryuzaki that I know this plan will work."
"What do you mean by that?" Matsuda asked. Sayu frowned a bit before she answered.
"When I found out what Light had become, I was more afraid than I ever had been in my life. I was too afraid to tell anyone, because I knew no one would believe me without seeing any proof. With Light, it just wasn't possible." Everyone listened intently as Sayu explained.
"When I heard him killing that Lind L. Tailer guy on TV, I didn't believe anyone could stop him. I had no hope. But then…" She smiled at L at that point. "I heard you, the real L." L smiled himself as Sayu went on.
"I heard you outsmart Light really good that day. That's when I started believing in you. From that day on, I felt hopeful again. I knew then that if there's anyone on this planet that could help me get my brother back… it would be you." Sayu concluded.
L suddenly felt something wet from his eyes, but quickly blinked it away before anyone noticed.
"That is very touching Sayu. So you think you can play your part convincingly?" He asked.
"No doubt about it. And besides, I have some things I've been wanting to tell Light since Day One." L seemed satisfied with everything now.
"Then it's settled. Mr. Yagami, I think it's about time to take her back home with you." L said. With that, Soichiro and his daughter left for their home, and to begin their plan for Light.
Flashback End
L saw how happy Sayu was now that her brother was back to the way he was. Although, he had to admit that smashing Sayu's phone was not part of the plan. He figured it was a spur of the moment. Those things tend to happen.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Come on, do you know how much trouble I went through to get that? Why not use it like Light did?" L turned to the Shinigami with a look of finality.
"The answer is simple. I… am NOT Light Yagami."
Later that day, L stood before the fireplace in his hotel room. He and the whole Kira Task Force stood with him for this last act.
"With this, the Kira Case… is officially closed." L said as he tossed the Death Note and all its torn out pieces into the fire.
They watched them burn in blue flames. Behind them, Ryuk groaned.
"Light was more fun than you were." With that, Ryuk flew off, never to be seen again.
"So that's it then. It's really over, isn't it?" Matsuda asked.
"Yes, it is over." Naomi replied, holding Raye's hand.
As L continued to stare into the fire, he thought about his last talk with Chief Yagami before leaving his family. What he did before he left may have made the future a bit brighter…
To be concluded.
