Matsuda Short Biography

Touta Matsuda



Touta Matsuda is the youngest member of the Kira investigation team. His alias is Taro Matsui.
Matsuda has the drive to match the other members of the team, but his lack of experience sometimes hinders the investigation. He is described as a "typical young man" who is "easy to get along with" and feels "very excited about trends and gossip;" often listening in on Light's intimate conversations with Misa and later Takada for the sake of gossip rather than the investigation. He becomes quite fond of Light, as noted by Hideki Ide at the series' conclusion. As for Misa, Matsuda often shows that he is a massive fan of hers, becoming quite upset when his death is faked and he can no longer work as her 'manager'. It is hinted that Matsuda has an inferiority complex regarding his detective ability, and many of his coworkers feel annoyed by his behavior. Matsuda's "risky moves" sometimes place him in danger, and his "quick thinking" sometimes aids the investigation, such as his actions in the Yotsuba case that lead to Higuchi's detainment. Matsuda likes Light and believes that he is not Kira, but at the end of the series he severely wounds Light by shooting him during the final showdown.
Matsuda stars in a Death Note film version special, aired on Japanese television, that takes place after Light's death; in it Matsuda has to come to terms with L's eventual death.
Despite working to capture Kira, Matsuda admits that he is not entirely sure whether or not the death of criminals is such a bad thing, though he does not let it get in the way of his work; even in the epilogue of the manga he still struggles with determining whether or not he did the right thing in siding with Near.
His birthday is December 14, 1978 (1981 in the anime).