He was chosen the most popular male character of 2006, and 2007 at Animage magazine’s annual Anime Grand Prix. His seiyū Jun Fukuyama also won the “Best Actor in a Leading Role” award for his portrayal of the character at the first Seiyū Awards in 2007.

Character planning history

While first designing the concept art design for Lelouch, the series’ original character designers CLAMP had initially conceived of his hair color as being white. Ageha Ohkawa, head writer at CLAMP, said she had visualized him as being a character to which “everyone” could relate to as being “cool”, literally, a “beauty”. During the early planning stages for Lelouch’s alter ego, Zero, CLAMP had wanted to create a mask never witnessed prior in any Sunrise series. While developing the character during the initial planning stages, the series’ core staff at Sunrise, director Gorō Taniguchi, writer Ichirō Ōkouchi, and the production team discussed numerous possible influences for the character with CLAMP, such as Kinki Kids and Tackey and Tsubasa.

Character outline

Lelouch is the son of the Emperor of Britannia, Charles zi Britannia, and the late Imperial Consort Marianne, making Lelouch the eleventh prince of the Britannian Imperial Family. He was seventeenth in line for the throne prior to his mother’s assassination and his sister’s crippling in the same incident. A ten year old Lelouch confronted the Emperor afterward and accused him of leaving his mother defenseless, even going as far as renouncing his entitlement to the throne. In response, his father banished him to Japan, where he was used as a political hostage in the Sakuradite conflict.

It was during his stay at the Kururugi household that he first met Suzaku Kururugi, with whom the young Lelouch did not interact initially in a friendly manner, before later becoming friends. However, when Britannia finally developed its Knightmare Frames fleet and decided to invade Japan to seize control of the Sakuradite mines, consequently discarding Lelouch’s use as a diplomatic tool, Lelouch, fearing for his and his sister’s safety, hid their true identities and sought the help of the Ashford family, who were his mother’s allies.

His mother’s death and his father’s apparent lack of concern in regards to it were huge blows to Lelouch. He always felt that it was unfair for both his mother and sister, and therefore made it his goal to pursue a better world for Nunnally. He also seeks to discover the true reason for his mother’s death, as she was murdered in the Aries Imperial Palace, a place terrorists would be unlikely to penetrate successfully without being noticed, if at all.

Zero

Shortly after gaining the power of Geass from C.C., Lelouch assumes the secret identity Zero, a mysterious, masked revolutionary dressed in a black helmet and cloak. The helmet has a retractable plate over the left eye so Lelouch can use his Geass. In this guise, he forms the Order of the Black Knights, initially composed of the members of Kaname Ohgi’s resistance group. The goal of this vigilante group is a campaign against powerful individuals who oppress the helpless, which he eventually expands into reforming Japan as an independent nation.

Lelouch is willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish his goal, even if it means lying to his followers and using people as bait for the outcome he desires. However, he has trouble putting those he is close to in harms way for the sake of his goal, which is a weakness as a commander but a remnant of his humanity and sanity. His feelings for Nunnally in particular often hinders his plans, particularly at the end of the first season, where he abandons a massive war with Britannian forces to rescue her, and early into the second season, when he has trouble believing Nunnally is willingly waging a campaign for peace that interferes with his plans. Gradually, however, he has come to embrace the fact that he has to destroy before reconstruction can occur, even if it means harming those he cares about.

Originally, Lelouch is motivated by the desire to avenge his mother’s death and construct an ideal world where his sister Nunnally can live in peace. After Nunnally becomes Viceroy of Area 11, and her wishes conflict with his goals, his friends help him to realize that his rebellion is no longer just for Nunnally, but for all the people of the world.

Abilities

Geass

Lelouch’s Geass, given to him by C.C., grants him “the power of absolute obedience,” allowing him to plant commands within a person’s mind upon eye contact which they will obey without question. Activation of his Geass is visually represented by the manifestation of a Geass sigil in his left eye. Commands dictated in this state are written into the minds of the designated targets once the sigil projects from his eye to theirs.

Lelouch could initially toggle Geass activation at will, but subsequently loses this control. In the second season, C.C. gives Lelouch a contact lens that blocks his Geass, but indicates that his Geass will eventually grow powerful enough to render it ineffective. Lelouch’s Geass evolves to cover his other eye in episode 21 of the second season, but he receives a second contact to compensate.

Of all the Geass abilities in the series, Lelouch’s has been explored the most, and also seems to have the most restrictions and side effects of any Geass introduced.

• Commands must be issued verbally.
• The victim must make direct eye contact for commands to be issued. The maximum effective distance is 270 meters. Line of sight via a reflective surface is sufficient for the effect to occur.
• Commands may be issued only once to any given individual, but any number of commands may be issued at initial application so long as eye contact is unbroken. Since Jeremiah’s Geass Canceler negates all Geass effects, those exposed to it may be commanded once again.
• The victim will not perform any action disallowed by their physical or mental capabilities, though they will try to carry out the command to the best of their ability. For example, a victim will not be able to correctly answer a question they don’t know the answer to, but will direct the user to someone who can if they are able. However, commands that affect the mind or consciousness, such as telling the victim to forget something, will take effect despite the fact that the victim could not normally force themselves to do so.
• An action will be carried out for as long as dictated in its command, or upon the indicated conditional circumstance. Eye contact does not need to be maintained for command execution to occur. No upper limit has been established, but the conditional command Lelouch gives Suzaku is still in effect more than a year later.
• The victim’s memories for the duration of command issue and execution are sealed and cannot be recalled, thus anyone affected by the power will not be able to remember anything they did while carrying out the command or who ordered them to do it.
• Two victims have shown the ability to resist a command for a short period before being forced to submit, both times the command being one that the victim finds utterly reprehensible and outside their normal character.

So long as the above conditions are met, commands may be issued to anybody besides those who have gained the power of immortality and to any number of individuals at once. Those under the effect of Geass have a red outline on their irises, presumably a visual cue for the viewer since the characters never point it out.

Intellect

Even without his Geass, Lelouch is a formidable opponent. He is highly intelligent, possessing a genius-level intellect, and is capable of devising and executing strategies with incredible speed and precision. As Zero, most of his leadership abilities come from his intelligence than his Geass. Rolo notes that operating the Absolute Defense Territory of the Shinkirō requires complex calculations which he cannot perform, while Lelouch almost makes it look easy. In the audio dramas, Suzaku says that, when they were children, Lelouch devised a secret sign language containing over 500 words.

Lelouch is quick to deduce facts from simple clues. In episode 14, when Mao says C.C.’s name, Lelouch instantly comes up with fourteen different possibilities for Mao’s identity, including the correct one. Lelouch is also able to perfectly predict the Lancelot’s actions without actually knowing who the pilot was simply through his study of their past battles, allowing Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords to almost defeat it, had not the battle been interrupted.

Lelouch is also charismatic and persuasive; as Zero, he is able to win the support of much of Japan’s population through well-delivered speeches combined with his ability to make miracles in almost any situation through his superior tactical planning. Mao repeatedly praises Lelouch’s persuasive talent, and V.V. remarks that Lelouch is “a lot like his father.”

Physical

Physically, Lelouch is underwhelming. He possesses the physical prowess of a teenager who engages in little to no strenuous physical activity. Thus, one of Lelouch’s traits is the inability to run very fast or for any substantial period of time. Within the series, this is usually played for comedic effect, as Lelouch is constantly outpaced by his classmates in every situation, and even the most simple tasks requiring manual labor exhaust him before he manages to accomplish anything significant. This joke is taken to its logical conclusion in the second season, where it is revealed that Lelouch is supposed to attend remedial physical education classes, but skips them as often as possible. This creates problems when Sayoko poses as Lelouch: she is a master of martial arts, and hence far more athletic than Lelouch himself. However, Lelouch does have some decent skill with firearms.

Lelouch is shown to be very talented at domestic skills such as cooking and sewing; it has been stated that this comes as a result of his taking care of himself and Nunnally for seven years. He serves as the cook for parties held by the Student Council, both because the others (except Milly) are terrible cooks and nobody else can meet his exact requirements (such as measuring ingredients to three significant decimals).

Lelouch is capable of proficiently handling a Knightmare Frame, having learned how by being the pilot of Ashford Academy’s Ganymede Knightmare Frame during school festivals before Suzaku’s arrival. He rarely battles opponents one on one, instead usually attacking with coordinated groups or using clever deceptions to gain an advantage. Pilots such as Suzaku and Cornelia, both of whom are masterful Knightmare pilots and usually pilot more advanced Knightmares than his own, are commonly able to overwhelm him in single combat. Lelouch is typically accompanied by Kallen, who serves as his personal guard. After stealing the Gawain, Lelouch co-pilots it with C.C., controlling the weapons and command functions while C.C. handles navigation and flight. After the Black Knights are exiled from Japan, Lelouch pilots the Shinkirō, which has the most powerful defense of any Knightmare, but requires complex calculations to be effective. Its highly-impenetrable defense allows him to hold his own against even the members of the Knights of the Round during the second battle of Tokyo.

Links

• Code Geass

Gallery

Design and conception

Tsugumi Ohba, story writer of the series, created L as a “force of justice” and a “super detective” who stands between Light and Light’s goals and advances the story. Ohba believed that the story would not hold much interest if L was significantly older than Light, so Ohba created L as a young adult. Ohba said that for L’s name he wanted to use a single letter with a lot of significance; according to Ohba he considered “I” and “J” but decided that they did not “feel as good” as “L” and chose “L” “after careful consideration.”

Ohba said that he gave L the alias “Ryuzaki” because L is pronounced like R in Japanese.

Takeshi Obata, artist of the series, described the thumbnails of L created by Tsugumi Ohba, the writer of the series, as having no “bags” under his eyes and a “plain face with no expression.” Obata said that the thumbnail design was “great, and I wish I could have used it as is.” Obata drew L as an “attractive young man” until Chapter 11, when the character appeared in person. After Chapter 11 Obata decided to contrast his appearance with Light’s appearance; Obata said that he and Ohba held this idea.

Ohba said that he left “everything” about L’s character design to Obata. Obata asked Ohba if L could be “unattractive.” Afterwards Ohba included ideas in his thumbnails, including L’s manner of sitting, “he’s English,” and “he’s listless.” Ohba said that he added details regarding L’s mannerisms and his “sweet tooth.” Ohba credits Obata for the character designs.

Obata said that, during the development of the early manga chapters, he feared that L would appear to be “so suspicious that Light would know instantly it was L if they ever met.” When Obata’s editor told him that he wanted L to have a face “looking cool based on the angle,” Obata added black “bags” under L’s eyes. Obata cited Devilman’s Akira Fudou when stating that he believed that black bags “looked cool.” In addition, Obata thought of a “dead eyes” concept involving L having “mostly no eyebrows” and “all-black eyes.” Obata believes that having black eyes usually makes a character “goofier,” but the bags “sharpen the character’s gaze.” Obata believes that the design evokes “a feeling of mystery” and that the reader cannot determine L’s true thoughts. In addition Obata said that the bags under L’s eyes attracts speculation about L’s lifestyle and past. He described the bags as “useful.” Obata designed L with a “simple” white, long-sleeved shirt and jeans outfit to convey the idea that L does not put thought into choosing his clothing. In Death Note: How to Read 13, Ohba presented an initial rough draft of L and said that, with a “cool expression” and without the “bags” under his eyes the rough draft L looks like “a totally different person.”

Obata stated that he believes that traits exhibited by L are best revealed “gradually.” Obata added that he believes that if he drew L eating “mountains of sweets” prior to revealing L’s face, L would not have “much credibility as a super detective” and people would question if L was “crazy.”

Obata said that he was often told that L’s fighting style is “similar” to capoeira; Obata said that he did not consider this when he drew L’s fights. Obata said that he was thinking of the most effective method to kick a person while handcuffed. Obata added that if the style resembles capoeira, then this “adds another element to it” and “that makes me happy.”

When designing color book covers Obata assigned colors to characters to “get the atmosphere right.” Obata assigned gold to L.

L in Death Note

L, who also uses the aliases Hideki Ryuga (流河 旱樹, Ryūga Hideki?), Ryuzaki (竜崎, Ryūzaki?), Eraldo Coil (エラルド＝コイル, Erarudo Koiru?), and Deneuve (ドヌーヴ, Donūvu?), the latter two for which he has developed reputations as the second- and third-best detectives in the world, is quite secretive and only communicates with the world through his assistant Watari. He never shows his face to the world, instead representing himself with a capital L in Cloister Black font. After meeting the Kira investigation team, he requests that the task force refer to him as Ryuzaki for discretion. The Kira investigation team never learns his true name. Ohba said that L is the smartest character in the manga because “the plot requires it.” Ohba also said that he personally views L as “slightly evil”; for instance, in chapter 109, Near discloses the fact that L claimed to pursue cases out of personal interest with no great sense of justice.

When asked about L’s nationality, Ohba responded saying “I think of him as a quarter Japanese, a quarter English, a quarter Russian and… maybe a quarter French or Italian? Something like that.”

Tom S. Peperium of IGN described L’s voice in the English anime version as “low monotone, while inspired by the original Japanese actor, sounds like a man deep in thought, a master detective on the hunt.”

L’s disheveled and languid appearance masks his great powers of deduction and insight. He tends to second-guess everything he is presented with, and is extremely meticulous and analytical. He has several quirks such as preferring to crouch rather than sit, eating only sweet foods like desserts and fruits, and holding items very delicately. L stayed in England for five years, and during that time he was the champion in tennis for the England Junior Cup. L also secretly assumes the identities of the world’s second and third best detectives (Eraldo Coil and Deneuve respectively).

L suspects early in the investigation that Light Yagami is Kira, but can not obtain any concrete evidence. In several situations, Light seems to be proven innocent by the circumstances, but L remains skeptical. If Light were Kira, the case would be solved, and L has trouble letting go of this simple and complete solution. L can easily present his conclusions publicly at any time, and with his reputation, is taken seriously.

Because of his initial suspicions of Light, L decides to join To-Oh University, the university that Light attends, using the name of Hideki Ryuga for investigative purposes. L attends To-Oh because he feels confidence in his reasoning skills and wishes to test them. He also intends to tell Light that he can “take the offensive.” L understands that his act is dangerous and since he understands Light’s thought process he feels confident that Light will not kill him at that point.

After L introduces himself as Ryuga, Light does not attempt to kill him since the name is conspicuously fake. Also, he has no way to know at the time whether the person is the real L or a proxy acting under orders. Light also reasons that L would have already introduced himself to Light’s father earlier, and thus that if he somehow killed L, he would be easily uncovered as Kira. When Light discovers his “Hideki Ryuga” alias, Light fears that if he writes this name in the Death Note, the face of the pop singer from which the alias was derived would enter Light’s head and therefore Light would inadvertently kill the pop idol. This would lead L to the obvious conclusion that Light is Kira.

Whenever L gives percentages to indicate how much he suspects a person of committing a crime, such as “five percent,” in reality he means over 90 percent. Although L gives Light a low percentage indicating how much he suspects Light, in reality L is “pretty certain” that Light is Kira. Ohba said about L, “The truth is, he’s a liar. [laughs]”

In Chapter 58, Light tricks Rem into killing L for his own personal gain, making her believe that she must kill him for the sake of Misa’s life. L’s last sight before death is Light triumphantly smiling over his defeated rival, and in his last moment L confirms to himself that Light is the first Kira. In episode 25 of the anime, prior to L’s death Light and L talk to each other for one last time on the roof of the investigation building; some viewers believed that L, somehow, knew that his death was drawing near.

Death Note: How To Read 13 revealed many facts about L. His true birth name is L Lawliet. His date of birth is Halloween of 1979 (1982 in the anime), making him 25 when he dies on November 5, 2004 (2007 in the anime). His height and weight are estimated to be 179 centimeters and 50 kilograms (5 feet and 10 inches and 110 pounds). His blood type is “unknown.” It is implied that L was a former resident of Wammy’s House, one of Watari’s orphanages, as well as a safe haven and educational facility specifically for intellectually-gifted children. Therefore, similar to Near and Mello, L’s abilities were discovered while living there, and he is most likely an orphan.

In chapter 38 of the manga, L suggests that even though he eats only sweet foods, he remains underweight because the brain uses the most calories of any organ in the body. He also says that if he sits normally, his reasoning ability would drop 40%.

Ohba said that his favorite human character in the series was L as Ohba believed that L was the “strongest” character in the series “besides Light.” Obata chose L as his favorite due to “appearance, personality, everything.” Obata said that he could never have created L and that he enjoyed drawing L. Obata added that because of this, L is not “real” to him and therefore he likes that aspect of L. In response to the question “Who was the most fun to draw?” both Ohba and Obata answered “L.”

Other Information

• Nicknames L
• Aliases Ryuzaki, Hideki Ryuga, Eraldo Coil, Deneuve
• Age 25
• Gender Male
• Species Human
• Date of birth 31 October 1979
• Date of death 5 November 2004
• Nationality British
• Occupation Detective
• Title World’s Greatest Detective

Conception and development

Tsugumi Ohba, the story writer of Death Note, said that his editor suggested the family name “Yagami” for Light. Ohba said that he did not feel “too concerned” about the meaning of the name (the kanji are “night” and “god”); he said that after he created the final scene in the manga he “liked” that the final scene created “deeper significance” in the nam

Takeshi Obata, the artist of Death Note, said that he had “no trouble” designing Light as the character description presented to him, “A brilliant honors student who’s a little out there,” was “clear and detailed.” As the weekly serialization continued, Obata simplified the design by unconsciously removing “unnecessary” lines and felt that he became “better” at drawing Light. When Chapter 35 appeared and the editor informed Obata that Light lost his memories, Obata felt that he had to “forget everything he learned” and draw Light in a similar manner as he appeared in Chapter 1. Obata said that he used “a lot of effort” to design Light’s wardrobe. According to Obata, he encountered difficulty imagining the clothing of “a brilliant person,” so he looked through fashion magazines. Obata envisioned Light as a “smart and formal guy” who wears formal shirts. Most of Light’s clothing in Death Note is “fitted” and Obata avoided jeans.

When designing color book covers Obata assigned colors to characters to “get the atmosphere right.” Obata assigned clear or “lack of a color” to Light.

Conception and development in the film version

Shūsuke Kaneko, director of the film, intended for Light to appear sympathetic at the beginning of the film; when Light first gains the Death Note Kaneko “was careful” to have Light react in a manner “as you and I would.” Kaneko changed the story involving Light gaining his first notebook as he felt that the audience “would have a hard time sympathizing” with Light if the scene remained the same as it was in the manga. Kaneko added that as he portrayed Light as “being enthralled” as he “becomes more cruel” to make the audience members feel that they could “do the terrible things he does” even if the members do not sympathize with Light.

Tatsuya Fujiwara said that he felt difficulty portraying Light in the film series because of the lack of “action” and because Light has no signature mannerisms and therefore has his feelings displayed by his face; Fujiwara added that he struggled conveying Light’s “incredible amount of intelligence” and that the performance would appear “very empty or simplistic” if Light received an improper portrayal. Fujiwara explained that he wanted Light to cry in a particular scene even though Kaneko told Fujiwara “Light doesn’t cry” since Fujiwara believed that the scene would feel “more honest”; Kaneko used the take.

Kaneko designed Light’s room to reflect the character’s personality by making it clean and neat and filling it with legal, criminal history, foreign, and academic books. The original version of Light’s room included a stereo; Kaneko replaced it with a vacuum cleaner to reflect Light’s “clean-freak self.”

Ken’ichi Matsuyama, the actor who portrayed L, said that he and Fujiwara became “so immersed” in their character portrayals that they did not talk to one another while on the set; when filming ceased they conversed and “went out for a drink or two.”

Character

Ohba described Light’s life as “ruined” once he obtained the Death Note, and that Light became a victim of the Death Note “in many ways,” Ohba described Light as bearing good faith intentions and having a “very conceited” nature. Ohba also describes Light as having a “warped” “desire to be godlike,” bearing love for his family, and intending to transform the world into “a better place.” Death Note: How to Read 13 also states that Light, “uncompromising” when achieving his ideals, “sullied” himself by using the Death Note and that his actions “may have been the result of the purity within him” prior to obtaining the Death Note. Douglas Wolk of Salon describes Light as “coldly manipulative,” “egomaniacal,” and “an unrepentant serial killer, a butcher on an enormous scale” who is not “a Freddy Krueger, a monster who represents pure evil, or a Patrick Bateman, a demonic symbol of his age.” Wolk describes Light as “the good guy, more or less” who genuinely believes that he holds “the moral high ground.”

Light constantly tries to evade the suspicion of L while both maintaining his identity as “Kira”—the name derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the English word “killer” (キラー, kirā?)—and cleansing the world of crime. The fact that he is a genius also adds to his notion that only he is fit to judge humanity and steer it on a proper moral course. James Brusuelas of Animation World Magazine uses “altruistically” as an adjective to describe Light’s quest to rid humanity of its criminals. Travis Fickett of IGN describes Light as a “sociopath.” Tom S. Pepirium of IGN describes Light as “brilliant, but disturbed.”

Toshiki Inoue, the series organizer for the Death Note anime, describes Light as a “child whose wish happens to come true.”

Light, born on February 28, 1986[2] (1989 in the anime), is a third year high school student (12th Grade) at Daikoku Private Academy (大国学園, Daikoku Gakuen?) [16] who also attends supplemental classes at Gamou Prep Academy in the beginning of the story. Light has a father, Soichiro Yagami, who is a member of the investigation team opposing Kira. In addition, Light has a mother, Sachiko Yagami, and a younger sister, Sayu Yagami.

In Spring 2004 Light becomes a first-year student (freshman) at To-Oh University (東応大学, Tōō Daigaku?), becoming one of two freshman representatives; L is the other freshman representative. During a tennis game with L at To-Oh, spectators reveal that Light was the junior high school tennis champion in 1999 and 2000; After his 2000 victory, Light quit tennis as he entered high school.

According to Ohba, Light sees Misa Amane, who he uses as an accomplice, as a “bad person” who killed people, so he acts emotionally cold towards her and manipulates her. Despite this, he keeps her alive even after her memories of being Kira have been removed for the second (and final) time.

When L is finally able to corner him, Light puts his master plan in practice. He temporarily gives up his Death Note to Ryuk, erasing his memories about his time as Kira from his mind. Rem, under instruction by Light to give it to someone who would use it selfishly, gives it to Kyosuke Higuchi of the Yotsuba Corporation. Now unaware of the fact that he was the original Kira, Light accepts L’s offer to join the investigation team to hunt down Higuchi, known as the third Kira. Light requests the alias Light Asahi (朝日 月, Asahi Raito?) to be used for him. When Higuchi is finally captured, Light touches his Death Note, thereby regaining his memory of when he was the original Kira. He then proceeds, exactly as planned, masterfully killing Higuchi by using the Death Note paper he put in his watch before he lost his memories; and manipulating Rem, who also dies in the process, to kill both Watari and L.

Light is later nominated by L’s investigation team (who are unaware that he is Kira) to act as L, due to the fact that they cannot reveal the death of the real L to the world. Light also takes over the role of L’s assistant, Watari. Now able to act as both Kira and L, Light can continue killing criminals while leading the investigation team in circles. His secret identity as L is soon discovered by the Special Provisions for Kira, President David Hoope, and Mello’s gang. Light joins the Japanese Police Force’s Intelligence Department in April 2009, believing that no one can stop his plans. Near and Mello eventually appear before him, trying to accomplish what L could not: to expose Kira’s true identity, and bring him to justice. At this point, according to How to Read 13, Light becomes “overtaken with evil” and possessing “arrogance that came with Kira’s power”; Light loses sight of his former self.

Wolk describes Light’s ideal world, a “totalitarian” place “ruled by a propagandistic TV channel and an arbitrary secret executioner.” Wolk said that Ohba sometimes suggests that the world is “in some ways a better, happier world than ours.”

In the end, the combined efforts of Mello and Near, combined with a large miscalculation and miscommunication on the part of Mikami and Light, force Light to reveal himself as Kira. In the final clash between Near and Light at a warehouse, all is revealed and the Kira case comes to an end after six long years.

In the manga version, after completely losing his head and characteristic cool over the prospect of being arrested, and in complete desperation after his attempts to write Near’s name down are thwarted by Touta Matsuda (who had previously believed in Light most ardently of everyone involved in the Kira case), Light begs Ryuk to help him. Ryuk reminds Light that he is on neither side, and fulfills his earlier promise to write Light’s name in his Death Note, thus ending Light’s life.

In the anime version, Light manages to flee the warehouse after Mikami commits suicide. Near instructs the team that there is no reason to pursue Light given that there should be no more hidden Death Notes, and Light’s wounds would prevent him from getting far. Despite this, Shuichi Aizawa, Kanzo Mogi, Hideki Ide and Matsuda follow Light but are unable to find him before he dies on the staircase of a nearby warehouse due to cardiac arrest from Ryuk writing his name in his Death Note. As Light slowly closes his eyes, an apparition of L appears before Light, mirroring Light standing over L in episode 25 at L’s death.

According to the manga, Light’s date of death is January 28, 2010. His height and weight are 179 centimeters (the height is 5 feet and 10 inches in the VIZ How to Read) and 54 kilograms (119 pounds), respectively. His blood type is A (see Japanese blood type theory of personality).

In Death Note: How to Read 13 Ohba said that Light was “a young man who could understand the pain of others” when he first encountered the Death Note. Ohba said that if Ryuk never developed an interest in the human world, Light would have become “one of the greatest police leaders in the world” who, with L, worked against criminals. Ohba added that he believed that debating whether Light’s actions were good or evil is not “very important.” Ohba says that he personally sees Light as a “diabolical” character. Obata said that Light was his second favorite human character and that he was not sure whether that was because he “liked” Light or because he drew “such a diabolical character” in a magazine for children.

When asked about which character was most similar to himself, Ohba indicated Near and “maybe Light.” Regarding Light Ohba cited “because I did well in school.”

Other Information

• Aliases : Kira, L-Kira, L the Second, Light Asahi
• Age 17 in beginning, 23 at death
• Gender : Male
• Date of birth 28 February 1986
• Date of death 28 January 2010
• Occupation High school student (Vol. 1-3)
• University student (Vol. 3)
• Police Detective (Vol. 7-12)
• Known relatives Soichiro Yagami (father), Sachiko Yagami (mother), Sayu Yagami (younger sister)

In the series, Naruto is a ninja affiliated with the fictional village of Konohagakure. The villagers ostracize Naruto because the nine-tailed demon fox, a malevolent creature that attacked Konohagakure, is sealed within his body. As such, Naruto has ambitions of becoming the village’s leader, the Hokage in order make everybody respect him. However, Naruto maintains a cheerful and boisterous personality, allowing him to befriend several other Konoha ninja throughout the series, as well as ninja from other villages. He builds an especially close relationship with Team 7, the ninja team where he belongs, treating them as his family. Naruto appears in all of the series’ films, as well as in other media related to the franchise, including all video games and OVAs.

Several anime and manga publications have expressed acclaim and criticism of Naruto’s character. Some view him as a stereotypical manga and anime protagonist comparable to those in many other shōnen manga, while others have praised his personality as well as his development in the series. Nevertheless, Naruto has remained highly popular with the Naruto reader base, placing high in several popularity polls. Merchandise based on Naruto has also been released, including figurines and plush dolls.

Creation and conception

When Kishimoto created Naruto’s character, he incorporated a number of traits he felt made an ideal hero: a straightforward way of thinking, a mischievous side, and many of the attributes possessed by Goku from the Dragon Ball franchise. He also made sure to keep Naruto “simple and stupid.” Kishimoto did not model Naruto after anyone in particular, instead conceiving him as childlike with a dark side induced by his harsh past. Despite this, he is always optimistic, a trait Kishimoto says makes him unique. Naruto’s personality is, by and large, childish in nature. Kishimoto frequently tries to show this when illustrating Naruto, such as depicting him mimicking a turtle like a child might do on the manga cover of volume 10.

Naruto’s wardrobe is based on clothing Kishimoto wore when he was younger; according to Kishimoto, using a pre-existing design would not have made Naruto unique whereas something original would have made him stand out too much. The orange coloring of his costume is used to make Naruto “pop,” with blues often being used to complement the orange. Because Naruto is associated with spirals, swirl patterns are incorporated into his costume. Initial illustrations of Naruto had him wearing boots, but Kishimoto substituted these for sandals, because he enjoys drawing toes. The goggles that Naruto used to wear were also replaced with a hitai-ate, or shinobi headband, because the goggles themselves were too time consuming to draw.

Kishimoto said he is glad his character has blond hair and blue eyes. The editor of Shonen Jump in the United States added that he implied that the traits may have led the character to appeal to a Western audience. Kishimoto said that he most identifies with Naruto out of all of the Naruto characters. When asked why Naruto’s favorite food is ramen instead of kitsune udon Kishimoto said that he personally liked eating ramen. In the Naruto: Clash of Ninja video game series, Naruto is playable in various stages of the demon fox’s manifestation characterized by a red-colored chakra. Kishimoto took inspiration from the presentation of these forms, imitating one of them for the manga cover of volume 26. When designing Naruto for his Part II appearance, Kishimoto drew Naruto’s forehead protector wider to make his eyebrows easier to draw, something that had bothered him in his previous design. He also noted that Naruto’s pants made the character look childish. To remedy this, Kishimoto designed a portion of Naruto’s pants to roll up, giving the character a more mature appearance.

In the original Japanese versions of Naruto, Naruto often ends his sentences with the addendum “-ttebayo” (which achieves an effect similar to ending a sentence with “you know?”). Kishimoto wanted to give Naruto a childlike catch phrase, and “dattebayo” came to mind. Kishimoto believes the phrase complements Naruto’s character, and serves as a verbal tic that portrays him as somewhat of a brat. Throughout the beginning of the English version, the dub replaced “dattebayo” and “-ttebayo” with the phrase “Believe it!”, both to mirror the effect and to match the character’s lip movements. The producers of the English anime stated that, of all of the characters, Naruto was the most difficult character to cast for, adding that Maile Flanagan “has Naruto down, from the mischievous side, that precocious twelve year old we learn to love, to the serious side.

Personality

Naruto’s father, the Fourth Hokage, sealed the dangerous Nine-Tailed Demon Fox within Naruto’s body at the cost of his own life, leaving Naruto without a family. As a result of him being the demon fox’s container, the villagers of Konoha hold a strong animosity for Naruto. Thus, he never has a source of love or attention during his early childhood. Desiring what he lacks in his early life, Naruto dreams of becoming Hokage, the village’s leader, hoping that it will bring him the villagers’ recognition and respect. To assist him in gaining this title, Naruto possesses a fierce determination, always confident he can complete a given task with relative ease. Although he does not always complete his tasks, Naruto’s efforts prove successful as the series progresses; many characters reach the conclusion that Naruto will someday be an excellent Hokage. Since his childhood, Naruto has commonly made jokes to attract attention. He sometimes goes to the point of transforming into a naked woman to ridicule whoever may be bothering him. This even causes his pupil, Konohamaru Sarutobi, to emulate his techniques and jokes.

Occasionally, Naruto’s determination results in those around him adopting some of his traits, such that in Part II his teacher, Kakashi Hatake, notes this to be Naruto’s unique power. Gaara, after Naruto defeats him in battle, discovers that true strength is found in fighting for one’s friends, not for oneself. These character metamorphoses serve as the moral for the arcs they take place in, and subsequently become the creed for the particular character’s life.

Through his ability to change others, Naruto gains the friends he lacks during his childhood. Among the many friendships he forms, none are more prominent in the series than those he has with his two teammates: Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno. With Sasuke, Naruto shares a highly competitive relationship which he likens to brotherhood. Though Sasuke betrays Naruto and the rest of Konoha at the end of Part I, Naruto maintains his attachment to Sasuke, readily lashing out at anyone who speaks poorly of him. Naruto possesses a deep dedication to Sakura, rooted in the crush he has had on her for years. Naruto’s commitment to Sakura is so strong that he will do anything to make her happy, vowing to someday return Sasuke to Konoha for her sake.

Abilities

Because of the demon fox sealed within him, Naruto has access to its great reserves of chakra, a form of energy which allows ninja to perform supernatural feats. This surplus of chakra allows him to perform ninja abilities that someone of his age would ordinarily be incapable of using. Though portions of the fox’s chakra constantly mix with Naruto’s own, Naruto can forcibly draw upon its reserves by either submitting to rage or by directly asking the fox for a donation of its strength. Once the demon fox chakra releases, a fox-shaped shroud envelops Naruto, with the number of tails, ranging from one to nine, indicating its current state of release. While each tail drastically increases his fighting strength, Naruto begins to lose his rationality as more tails appear, completely losing himself once the fourth tail appears. Because the demon fox’s power can quickly become a danger to those he cares for, Naruto has begun to limit his reliance on and usage of the power.

Naruto takes advantage of his expanded chakra reserves throughout the series. His first and most recurring example of this is the Shadow Clone Technique, which creates any number of physical copies of the user, but requires a large amount of chakra. Though most ninjas can create only a few shadow clones, Naruto’s vast chakra allows him to create hundreds of clones at once without worrying about tiring out. He finds a number of uses for these clones, among them overwhelming opponents, scouting large areas, and training in a short period of time. His ability to summon toads to aid him in battle also relies on the fox’s chakra, since he can only summon larger toads with the fox’s help. He also learns senjutsu, a power-enhancing ability derived from frogs and involving the gathering of natural energy.

Naruto favors the Rasengan, a concentrated ball of spinning chakra first created by his father. When performing the technique, Naruto creates shadow clones to help him manipulate the chakra into its proper shape. While capable of grinding into whatever it touches and causing great damage, Minato creates the Rasengan with the intention of infusing it with his own elemental chakra. Through repeated training with his shadow clones, Naruto infuses the Rasengan with his own wind chakra. This results in the creation of the Wind Style: Spiraling Shuriken (風遁・螺旋手裏剣, Fūton: Rasen Shuriken?), which damages anything it impacts on a cellular level, but also injures Naruto’s arm, though to a lesser extent.

Other Information

• Date of birth : October 10
• Notable relatives : Minato Namikaze (father, deceased), Kushina Uzumaki (mother, presumed deceased)
• Ninja rank Genin
• Ninja team Team 7