Unnamed Shinigami



An Unnamed Shinigami debuted in the "Director's Cut" one-shot special of the Death Note anime which only aired in Japan. Like Ryuk, he too was bored with the Shinigami Realm. This Shinigami has a skeletal figure and dons a coat, a pair of goggles, uses a tie as a headband and carries a large skeletal object which he uses like a hammer. He takes an interest in Ryuk's visit to the human realm, and bribes Ryuk with a shinigami apple in exchange for information how to undertake passage into the human world. Ryuk accepts, and begins to tell the story of Light Yagami's legend in regards to the Death Note. Before Ryuk can finish, however, the Unnamed Shinigami is gone, leaving the Shinigami Realm with his sights set on the human world.

Members of the fan base have theorized that this Unnamed Shinigami may be the reincarnation of Light Yagami. This is largely due to five pieces of evidence:


 * The coat he wears looks very similar to Light's when he died.
 * He walks up stairs to meet Ryuk (a subtle reference to Light's death).
 * The way he tosses the apple to Ryuk, just as Light used to do.
 * The fact that he inexplicably knows Ryuk's love for apples (without asking the other Shinigami).
 * The fact that Ryuk says "Raito" (Light's real name) as he realizes the identity at the end (after the Unnamed Shinigami leaves before the credits).

The "Raito" theory is further supported by Ryuk's statement in his first conversation with Light:

"Do not assume that a human who has used a Death Note can go to Heaven or Hell."

This particular rule does not apply to being sent to Purgatory, also known as the Shinigami Realm. This would explain what happens after death to humans that have used a Death Note, as Purgatory (Mu) is neither good or evil. In this realm, "living" means having an empty existence of "nothingness" amidst the grey, grunge and greed of the Shinigami Realm.

However, it is never directly stated in Death Note whether or not the Unnamed Shinigami is the reincarnation of Light Yagami. In fact, the end rules of the notebook (volume 12) clearly state: "After [humans] die, the place they go is Mu (nothingness)" and "Once dead, they can never come back to life." These rules may only apply to the resurrection of a dead body (as in the eraser from the Pilot chapter).

Nevertheless, some have theorized that the "nothingness" described could be the Shinigami Realm for humans that have used Death Notes, and "never coming back to life" could mean being reincarnated as a Shinigami. Although Light may be the exception to these rules, further information has yet to be revealed by either Tsugumi Ohba or Takeshi Obata.