Lies

Lies (嘘, Uso) is the ninth and final chapter of volume nine and the seventy-ninth chapter of the Death Note manga series.



Plot
Mello asks Mogi to come and see him in New York. He tells him to bring no wires or cameras, to stay on the phone at all times and to only hang up while he is on the airplane. Light sees this as a perfect opportunity to catch Mello. Mogi leaves Los Angeles for New York with Aizawa and Ide tailing him with cameras which are relayed to Light's computer screens. From her own room, Misa also watches the images, her Death Note and pen on standby to kill Mello at the first opportunity.

In New York, Mogi is directed by Mello to a certain building. Mello, who is watching from another building, then calls Near and tells him of Mogi's impending arrival. Mello tells Near to question him but to let him keep his cell phone on so that he may overhear the conversation from his own location.

Near is impressed by Mello's tactic, but is concerned that Mogi may be L/Kira. He quickly calls L and, when he hears Light on the other line, claims to have dialed a wrong number and hangs up. Near is now sure that this man is not L or Kira and allows him to enter the SPK's HQ.

Surprised to be with Near instead of Mello, Mogi assumes that they are both in collusion and that Near therefore cannot be trusted. He maintains a stubborn silence. Hearing Near introduce himself over Mogi's cell phone, Misa, knowing Near to be Light's enemy, quickly uses her laptop in order to send a message to a third party.

Near questions Mogi and even asks him if the late L had ever suspected someone in their team of being Kira. Mogi doesn't answer. Near and Mello both assume that Mogi may be controlled by Kira not to talk and that this indicates that Kira is indeed in the Japanese Task Force. This exchange is overheard by Matsuda, Aizawa and Ide.

Mello then announces that he tested the "13 day" rule on the Mafiosi and was satisfied that it was fake. Near asks Mogi if this does not strike him as odd. Mogi still does not respond.

Light is confident that Mogi will stay quiet but is concerned that the others are also listening to this conversation and will begin to suspect him, even if they do not trust Mello's word. He considers killing them all, but faces the old dilemma that this will simply narrow Kira down to him. However, he has another means of dealing with Near.

Two days later, a riot erupts in New York as pro-Kira zealots led by Demegawa begin to storm the building where Near is staying. They are all determined to kill Lord Kira's enemies!

As L, Light contacts Near and suggests that his location was leaked either by Mello or due to poor security by the SPK. However, Near is quite convinced that L is lying and that only Kira, a member of the Japanese Task Force, would leak the information.

Conception
Tsugumi Ohba said that the chapter's title "Lies" refers to the first time in the whole storyline when a character acknowledges verbally that Light is in fact lying. Light and Near are both trying to uncover the truth about one another in the conversations they have.

Chapter Guide
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