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Fifty Days	By : sashocirrione Category: Death Note > Het-Male/Female > L/Misa Views: 2868 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, and I do not make any money from these writings.

Chapter List
- 21
- 22
- 23
CHAPTER 22: Yakuza
Setting up Matt and Wedy to go out on missions to look for Ryuk was easy. L assigned them the short missions that were more suited to their attention spans than all-day stakeouts, namely lurking outside Kira-supporting club meetings to see who went in and out, watching the crowd of Kira supporters that gathered outside Sakura TV whenever the show "Kira's Kingdom" was being broadcast, and going to the funerals of local criminals killed by Kira, which invariably drew both pro-Kira and anti-Kira crowds. There were only a few days until Matt and Wedy left on their respective vacations, but each of them could easily fit in two or three missions of that sort every day, and there was always a chance that Ryuk might be spotted even in the span of just a few days.
With Ide, L put him on a different mission. After having Ide meet Watari in a hotel suite and place his hand through a hole into a box, touching Ryuk's paper without knowing what he was touching, Ide was given a schedule to follow and a list of 53 locations. Tokyo was a city of commuters, and the profile L had developed for the new Kira indicated a young professional. The new Kira wasn't even trying to hide the timing of the deaths, which followed the schedule of a worker with normal work hours.
A large portion of Tokyo's workers went through at least one of those 53 locations while commuting to their jobs. For each weekday, Ide would stake out one location per day, arriving before the morning commute began and staying until the evening commute was certainly over. These locations had already been outfitted with extra cameras with very good definition, not the usual grainy surveillance videos.
If Ide sighted Ryuk, it was likely Ide couldn't safely get close enough to determine who Ryuk was following, at least not the first time, but the cameras would capture many faces and as long as Kira didn't realize he was being observed, he should continue using the same commuting route, allowing his identity to be narrowed down. Once Kira was known, it would probably be a matter of simply searching his home thoroughly, and if that didn't turn up a murderer's notebook, then putting him under enough surveillance should show where it was hidden.
If the notebook was found and had criminals' names written in it in Kira's handwriting, then that fact along with the cessation of deaths the instant he was arrested should prove he was indeed Kira, and allow a conviction. As long as the names were there, it should work that way, with no other proof needed. The only problem in that situation would be if the courts refused to believe a notebook could kill people unless it was handed over to them, which wasn't going to happen. If the courts took that stance, it would make it impossible to convict any Kira.
But, assuming the courts would allow the notebook to be demonstrated from afar and would believe its power was real, then the only difficulty convicting the new Kira would be if there weren't criminals' names written in the notebook. That could happen if Kira was smart enough to destroy pages as soon as he'd used them.
If Kira always erased the evidence after killing, then there would be a choice. Either use hidden surveillance to let Kira kill criminals on-camera to prove it was indeed him, or save lives by setting up some kind of trap, like the one with Higuchi, that would show Kira attempting to kill but failing at it.
The trap might be difficult to set up without Kira realizing it, which could lead to an inability to convict him. The morals of letting criminals die when it could be easily prevented would need to be weighed against the practicalities, and also against the danger of Kira managing to slip away from surveillance and hand the notebook to a fifth Kira. Even if it meant the fourth Kira could never be convicted, it would be better to completely block the creation of a fifth Kira. It was more important to end the Kira business once and for all than to punish one murderer.
And, even catching Kira actually killing on-camera had its difficulties. Ryuk was probably expecting such a move. Would he warn Kira? Ryuk was fairly neutral, but he liked his game, his entertainment, to continue. So, hidden cameras would need to be installed with a very high degree of expertise at hiding them, taking into account that a creature who could look inside objects might be searching for them. Wedy probably had enough expertise to do that.
The day after Aiber's death, Watari interrupted L as he was researching exactly where the newest criminals killed by Kira had been publicized.
L was surprised to see Watari entering the main investigation room without the coffee he usually brought at this time.
As soon as L turned away from his computer, Watari said, "Ryuzaki, I've had my contacts tracking what Yumiko has been doing, and I believe I understand the full situation now. A very large amount of money, far more than Yumiko has ever had access to before, was deposited into her bank account, and about a third of it has already been paid to the Matsuzaki Detective Agency. When following the trail of money backwards, it led to the Yakuza. With a few bribes to my contacts within organized crime, I was told that Yumiko obtained the loan from the Yakuza in return for insinuating herself into her uncle's paper company in such a way that she can funnel funds in and out, essentially using it for money laundering purposes. To satisfy her debt, she will continue laundering money for the mafia for at least a decade, but if she works for them that long it is unlikely they'll ever let her go. She hired the Matsuzaki Detective Agency to try to discover who you really are and everything about you, especially the events leading up to the current situation with Misa."
The Matsuzaki Detective Agency, with three detectives and an assortment of employees, was supposedly the best private detective agency in Japan, and could command pricey fees based on its reputation. L knew that it wasn't actually the best; it was simply the best one that had a large amount of publicity. There were four private detective agencies that were probably better, but the Matsuzaki Detective Agency was still quite capable and formidable.
Thankfully, there had been no visits to Misa since Yumiko had made this move. That one connection was the only chance the Matsuzaki Detective Agency had of causing trouble. There was nothing else available, except for things that had already become part of the public record. Being followed back to headquarters after a hospital visit by people who were professionals at stalking and trailing could lead to difficulties.
There was a big difference between the media and actual detectives. The paparazzi were not too hard to avoid, especially since they did not hang out at the hospital all the time. It was simply a matter of making special arrangements with the doctors for surprise visits after normal visiting hours, combined with sending Watari to scout out both entrances before going in, and using a hat and a high-collared coat and large sunglasses.
But, measures like that would not work to throw off people who had spy-level training in surveillance. It would still be possible to visit Misa undetected, but it would be much more difficult and risky, and it would only take one mistake to be followed back to headquarters. Or to have a photo taken that was higher-quality than the two ones with the face covered up that were currently out there in the media.
And then there was the further situation, of Yumiko sacrificing herself for Misa in a way that would bring Yumiko pain for a long time, perhaps for life, and would possibly get the entire Amane family entangled in something destructive. Yumiko had brought this on herself through a combination of undeserved loyalty and stupid impulsivity, but she didn't deserve it. What she'd done was very understandable, actually kind of admirable, an extreme act of sisterly love for a sister who'd had little to do with her for about a year.
L said, "Find out exactly who in the Yakuza has made this arrangement with Yumiko, and pay to have it cancelled and for the entire Yakuza to refuse to deal with Yumiko ever again. Also, freeze Yumiko's bank account immediately so that she can't make any more payments to the Matsuzaki Detective Agency, and pay her rent and bills and have a grocery service send food to her house until the time comes to unfreeze it. Also, find at least one decoy who looks similar enough to my photos in the media that we might be able to mislead the detectives with him. I'll call Yumiko and try to get her to fire them, but we have to prepare for the possibility that she won't fire them, or that they might keep pursuing the case on their own in order to sell the results to the tabloids."
Watari said, "I will start on it immediately, Ryuzaki," and headed in the direction of his private office.
L turned back to the computer, and examined trends in the database of Kira killings while he waited for Yumiko's bank account to be frozen and considered what to do. Contacting the Matsuzaki Detective Agency personally wasn't an option. They weren't idiots there, they would figure out something highly unusual was up if someone had discovered so much about what they were doing so quickly. It would be quite suspicious if that someone was also either bribing them to drop the case or to turn over the case to some other detective agency. Or, if Interpol or the Japanese police ordered them to stop, it would also lead to possibly dangerous speculations.
Weird circumstances, combined with their pride, might only increase their determination to find out what was truly going on. No, the only thing to do to them directly was to make sure they didn't get paid any more. It was entirely believable that someone of Yumiko's circumstances would run out of money to pay them before the job was finished. Still, Yumiko had probably paid them enough already for them to stay on the trail for weeks, unless she told them to quit, so she would need to be contacted.
Telling Yumiko everything Watari had discovered would show her the futility of the situation, that she had been out-maneuvered and out-bribed, and no longer had a choice in the matter or any means of paying anyone to investigate. Admitting that much would have the advantage of virtually forcing Yumiko to fire the detectives she'd hired, which would probably end it.
But admitting so much would also let Yumiko know that something very odd was going on, and that "Hideki Ryuga" had good reasons to hide. It would probably increase her panic over Misa and possibly make her stubborn about firing the detectives she'd hired. It would also make Yumiko think about how "Hideki Ryuga" had discovered all this, and there would really only be two obvious conclusions.
She would either think that she'd been put under surveillance, or that "Hideki Ryuga" had significant ties to organized crime. Either idea would be worrying. But, it couldn't be helped. The best way to counter the threat represented by the Matsuzaki Detective Agency would be to have Yumiko fire them. Waiting for them to lose interest because of not being paid might take too long and involve too many hassles, but if it turned out that way, additional plans could be implemented just to trick them.
L waited until Watari sent a message saying that Yumiko's bank account had been frozen, and then fished his phone out of his pocket with a sense of trepidation. Yumiko was scary, and the nightmare about being half-raped by her hadn't improved things any. If only she didn't look so similar to Misa, it would be easier to deal with her. At least her style of clothing was radically different than Misa's.
When L called, Yumiko answered with, "Ryuga, it's you, isn't it? You're the only one I can never get caller ID for."
Her voice sounded very tired.
L said, "Yes, it's me. Yumiko, I want to talk about the private detectives you hired. The Matsuzaki Detective Agency. I know their fees are too high for you, and then my private detective discovered how you paid for it. Since I married Misa, your family is now my family. I do not want my family involved with the Yakuza. I have paid the Yakuza to release you from your obligations and to never have anything to do with you again."
Yumiko said, "So, stalking Misa wasn't enough, you're stalking me now too?"
L said, "Misa told me nothing about her family. It is only natural to research it, especially since I need to determine if Misa has another stalker and if she possibly didn't shoot herself. Gathering as much information about Misa as possible is the only way that my private detective can start that investigation."
"If you can stalk me, I can stalk you back. I've already paid the detectives, and I'm stuck with this horrible job until I find another one. I'm not going to waste that."
There was a testiness in her voice, as if she were daring him to challenge her. Would pushing her only make it worse? Well, backing off wouldn't make her give up either, not with how things stood now.
L said, "Yumiko, you will not be able to afford the next payment. I've had your bank account frozen. Once I get this sorted out and the remainder of your loan has been extracted and returned to the Yakuza, I will unfreeze it. Until then, I will pay your bills and have your usual groceries sent to your house since you won't have access to your own money. If you try something else foolish to earn money for the next payment, I will not rescue you again but I will freeze your bank account and remove the money. I value my privacy. You have paid the Matsuzaki Detective Agency as much as you will ever pay them."
"Well, then I'll see how much they can do until the money runs out."
It would be possible to keep pushing on her, to tell her there was enough evidence to charge her with attempted money laundering and several other crimes and try to force her to fire her detectives. But, resorting to such blatant threats would make it seem as if there were more going on than just being eccentric and reclusive.
L said, "You are wasting your money, Yumiko, but I understand why. You don't trust me, and you think I'm a bad husband. I'm sorry you feel that way."
Before L could hang up, Yumiko said, "Misa will tell me everything as soon as she wakes up. Have you talked to the doctors today? It should be soon."
"What?"
"Oh, you're such a good husband, but you don't visit her very often, and you don't care about what happens to her. Misa has been following some things with her eyes, just today, and her left hand has been twitching. Because of this, the doctors say she probably will wake up. A concerned husband would be calling the doctors anxiously every day."
L swallowed, and noticed his hands were trembling slightly. Watari did check with Misa's doctors regularly, but he hadn't done so today yet. L said a quick goodbye to Yumiko and got off the phone. He suddenly realized that he didn't have a coherent plan for what to do if Misa woke up. His mind had not wanted to think about her, had tried to completely ignore her existence and assume that she'd either die or never wake. It had been easy, too easy, to avoid making those plans.
If Misa did wake up, what would she say and do? Would she demand her notebook to be returned to her? That was not a possibility. Misa was far too dangerous that way, and even if Rem pushed for it, the notebook could simply be destroyed first. It would be easy to say that a co-worker had done it against orders. It would mean Rem would be free to go anywhere, and extra care would need to be taken, but it would be far better than a Misa with the power to kill. Rem, at least, was mostly passive.
It was very unlikely Misa would tell Yumiko about being the second Kira. Misa hadn't told anyone other than Light before this, and Misa would know the trouble that such an admission would cause.
There was a strong chance Misa would deny being married, but that could easily be put down to memory loss from the head wound, and it wouldn't really change things because Misa's family had already been mined for as much information as they had. It was unlikely that continuing to pose as Misa's husband would uncover any additional clues.
Misa might say that "Hideki Ryuga" was a fake name, and she could even possibly admit that "L Lawliet" was the real name of her "husband." That could cause a great deal of trouble, but since Misa didn't want the Kira rumors to stick to her, she probably would avoid mentioning someone with a first name of "L" since it would certainly fuel speculations.
Would Misa want to follow the plan suggested just before her attempted suicide, of going on the run? L shivered and huddled in on himself more. That would mean an excellent situation for testing Rem's weakness repeatedly without raising much suspicion, unlike Misa's current situation, but it would also probably mean needing to put on an act of loving Misa.
L's mind immediately began mapping out scenarios where being on the run with Misa wouldn't mean sex. Running in separate directions "just for a while" to confuse the trail might work. Also, there was pretending to have picked up a nasty sexually transmitted disease in the meantime, or perhaps taking medication to cause impotence. His mind raced desperately, trying to come up with more and more reasons to give Misa for why sex wouldn't be possible while on the run.
No, I'm thinking this way for my own comfort, not because of logic. Unfortunately, the best way to fool Rem under such circumstances would be to have what looks like a loving relationship with Misa, including sex. If it seems as if something other than fear is driving my behavior, then it will seem less likely that I'm the one setting up threats and sending them at Misa.
L was feeling sick again.
After getting out of that situation, and becoming used to freedom and self-determination again, voluntarily walking right back into it would be an entirely new kind of torture.
He suddenly felt exhausted, a terrible exhaustion crushing him with no warning at all, making him want to crawl into a nice soft bed and wrap up in protective layers of blankets and simply sleep, not thinking about things at all, just to have blissful oblivion.
L tried to shrug off his feelings. He opened a live video feed of the subway station Ide was currently staking out, and switched from one camera to another, watching the milling crowd. At last he picked out Ide. Ryuk, even if he did appear, would not be visible except in person.
Ide was blending with the crowd well, looking as if he were impatiently trying to make his way to the cluster of shops selling newspapers, candy and other items that were at the far end of the giant room he was in. Ide was good at impatient expressions, perhaps because he really felt that way much of the time. Then Ide reached his target, bought a newspaper and settled onto a bench.
It was a good thing Ryuk looked so outlandish, was ten feet tall, and flew. Unlike a human, it would be nearly impossible to miss him if he went past, even with part of one's attention on a newspaper.
This was the tenth or so spot check since Ide had begun his mission. During most of these spot checks, Ide had been doing a good job of blending in. On occasion it seemed as if he were loitering for no reason, and sometimes he looked a bit too much like an undercover cop. It was something about the look in his eyes and the way he scanned the crowd.
To counter this, he was dressing exactly according to the instructions he'd been given, and it did help to make him seem less like a cop. Mostly, Ide was doing well. If Kira were paranoid enough to be picking out people like that, there were dozens more in the crowd who looked far more suspicious than Ide.
But, L's mind kept wanting to shut down, and at last he retired to his bed intending to take a long nap.
When he'd crawled into bed and arranged the blankets into a warm nest, he couldn't sleep. He stared at the ceiling, trying to think, feeling as if his thoughts were somehow broken. They kept running in circles and skittering away from the central looming issues. No, this needed to stop. Things needed to be under some kind of control.
That helpless feeling, of being thoroughly owned in body and actions, of being pushed around by the combined team of a god of death and a model who had the build of a toothpick and shouldn't be a threat either physically or intellectually, that feeling, that creeping fear, it had to be conquered.
I need to think of myself. It would be better to die than to come out of this too damaged. If I must run away with Misa, I should test Rem immediately and relentlessly, no matter the risk.
Yes, that would be better. A clean death, or a clear victory, avoiding the corrupting influence of maintaining a fake relationship with Misa, of letting her filthy hands roam where they pleased without limit, of allowing her to touch and pleasure and provoke responses, of allowing that shame to build up once more, this time truly knowing what it meant, no longer able to take refuge in delusion.
It would be best to arrange things so that the "chase" would start immediately upon fleeing, so that the first threat to Misa that could only be answered by Rem happened on the very first day of running, allowing no time for rest of any kind.
And, subsequent challenges for additional tests, each in slightly different circumstances to fully test what Rem could or couldn't do, should happen frequently after that, the entire thing orchestrated to create an illusion of a hot pursuit that they were barely managing to avoid, a pursuit so relentless that they could hardly sleep and eat for running, let alone have sex. In those circumstances, multiple attacks on Misa within a short span of time would be fairly believable, the situation just needed to be crafted right.
As L began putting together the details of possible plans in his mind, he felt his body relaxing gradually, sinking into a warm, comfortable feeling. Yes, both Watari and Roger would be briefed on the steps to take if the only option became suddenly fleeing with Misa. This was familiar, comfortable territory, working out the details of just how to outsmart an enemy.
When the finishing touches had been placed on the plans, L drifted off into a long, satisfying nap.
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Fifty Days