Around 11:50 PM, Makoto Shinkai dragged his exhausted body home.
Five years ago, fresh out of university, he'd joined the game company Falcom.
The company was fairly well-known in the industry, and he'd originally thought that even if he couldn't be completely comfortable there, it would be far better than returning to his hometown to inherit the family business. At least this way, his life would feel meaningful.
Yet after several years on the job, he now felt lost.
Falcom was notorious for its low pay and endless problems. Despite graduating from Chuo University's Faculty of Letters with a degree in Japanese Literature, he was forced to handle everything from programming and graphic design to animation and promotional video production.
The workload was overwhelming, the pressure immense. He could only cope by using his meager free time to create personal animated shorts, a way to release the stress.
He worked diligently at the company, but even when he completed his tasks exceptionally well, no one ever noticed him, no one cared about him. It was as if he were just an unremarkable stone in the corner of a wall.
In contrast, his self-produced animated shorts had achieved some success. His first, Distant World (1997), a 90-second film, won a special award at a small festival. Last year, She and Her Cat, completed the previous year, took the grand prize at the 12th DoGA CG Animation Contest.
Early this summer, he began working on a new animated film, Voices of a Distant Star. This time, he planned to make it longer, about twenty minutes long. However, his day job had become so demanding that the animation project had stalled.
His job was his work; animation was his passion.
Previously, he had managed to balance both, but now he felt they were becoming incompatible. Still, he hesitated to quit his job and become a professional animator.
Making animation was difficult. As a hobby, failure was no big deal. But if it became his profession, he doubted he could remain so carefree.
Would he still be able to maintain his passion for animation then?
Although he had created two award-winning animated shorts, they were too short and the awards lacked significant prestige. The gap between him and professional animators remained vast, and rashly entering the animation industry might not be a wise choice.
That's what he thought. But today, he received an email.
The sender was Lin Zhiyan, President of the animation company L.S Production and Supervising Director of the Death Note anime. He mentioned having seen Makoto Shinkai's award-winning She and Her Cat at the DoGA CG Animation Contest, praising his talent and arguing that he shouldn't waste it at a game company. He asked if Shinkai would be interested in pursuing a career in animation.
"If you're interested in developing a career in animation, please contact me," the email read.
Makoto Shinkai had heard of the Death Note anime; its promotional posters were displayed at the train station. The latest issue of Animage magazine also featured the series, predicting it could become a dark horse in the October anime market. The article introduced Lin Zhiyan, highlighting his multiple roles and his professional background on IG.
He'd heard of it, but work had been so overwhelming lately that even his animation projects had stalled. He hadn't had time to keep up with new series.
Today, he'd made a point of leaving work early. Normally, he'd be working until the early hours, unable to get home at all, and might even end up sleeping at the office.
The thought alone was exhausting.
But when he remembered the email he'd received today, he felt less weary.
Although Lin Zhiyan seemed younger than him and wasn't a major figure in the animation industry, Animage described him as a well-known figure with boundless potential.
The fact that someone like this had noticed him and recognized his talent made him incredibly happy. Especially compared to how he was treated at work, it was almost enough to make him cry.
Still, he hesitated about whether to contact Lin Zhiyan.
He wanted to watch the man's animation first before deciding.
With these thoughts swirling in his mind, he turned on the TV, sat down in front of it.
At midnight, the second episode of the Death Note animation officially aired on TBS Channel.
It began with an opening sequence about a minute and a half long, followed by the GG sequence. After the GG, the main story resumed, but with a brief recap of the previous episode, lasting several tens of seconds. This recap gave viewers like Makoto Shinkai, who hadn't seen the first episode, a general understanding of the plot so far.
Once the recap ended, the title of the second episode appeared: "Confrontation."
The first few minutes focused on developing the male lead, showcasing Yagami Light's intelligence and caution.
With the Death Note, which could kill anyone, combined with his high intellect and cautious nature, the male lead seemed practically invincible.
However, a mysterious figure codenamed L soon appeared.
"Chief, who is L?"
"No one knows L's real name or whereabouts, but he can solve even the most difficult cases and has cracked many cold cases worldwide. He's the top authority in the world of criminal investigation and our last resort."
This brief exchange highlighted L's mystique and formidable reputation.
Yet, Makoto Shinkai, watching from his couch, remained somewhat skeptical.
Even if L was as brilliant as he was, he was still just an ordinary, powerless human. The Male Lead, on the other hand, was exceptionally intelligent, extremely cautious, and possessed the Death Note—a bug-like artifact.
Could L truly find and capture the Male Lead with just these resources?
Or did L actually have superpowers, or perhaps even his own Death Note?
If that were the case, the playing field would be level, and it might actually be possible to expose and apprehend the Male Lead hiding in the shadows. But that would be too cliché.
As he pondered this, he continued watching, and soon, he was stunned.
On television, broadcast worldwide, a man claiming to be L appeared, declaring he could mobilize the world's police forces and declaring war on the Male Lead.
Provoked, the Male Lead used the Death Note to kill the man. But after the man died, the code name "L" appeared on the screen, and L's true voice emerged:
"I can't believe it... I just wanted to test something, and this happened. Killer, you can kill from a distance. I wouldn't have believed it myself if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes."
"Killer, listen carefully. The LIND·L·TAILOR you just killed on television was scheduled to be executed at this very moment. It wasn't me."
"Neither the television nor the internet reported on him. He was a criminal secretly arrested by the police. Even you wouldn't be able to obtain information on a criminal like that, would you? But L himself is indeed alive and well in this world."
"Come, kill me."
"What? Can't do it? It seems you can't kill me. There are people you can't kill, and that gives me a valuable clue. To repay you, I'll share some information: although this broadcast is claimed to be global, it's actually only being aired in the Kanto region of Neon."
So, he had already deduced from the first murder by heart attack that the killer was likely in the Kanto region of Neon. He just lacked proof. The Male Lead, provoked, killed the imposter L, falling right into L's trap and proving his deductions correct.
Without superpowers or another Death Note, and despite not having captured the Male Lead yet, Lin Zhiyan had managed to deduce and prove his general location solely through his extraordinary intelligence. It was truly impressive.
At the end of the second episode, the storyboard showed the Male Lead and L speaking the same words across the distance: "I will find you and eliminate you. I am... on the side of justice!"
After the main program ended, Makoto Shinkai pulled his gaze away from the TV and couldn't help but mutter under his breath, "Mr. Hayashi is truly remarkable."
Just from watching the second episode, he felt this was not the kind of animation an ordinary person could create.
Conversely, Lin Zhiyan was no ordinary person!
However, even Lin Zhiyan's extraordinary talent didn't shake Makoto's confidence. After all, he had long known that professional animators were incredibly skilled.
There were plenty of people more skilled than Lin Zhiyan. If he let that discourage him, he might as well give up on animation entirely.
After a few seconds of silence, he pulled out his phone, found the email Lin Zhiyan had sent earlier, and began writing a lengthy reply. He revised it repeatedly, and once he was satisfied, he pressed send.
Perhaps the words of someone this remarkable could be trusted.
Please Support me by becoming my patreon member and get 15+ chapters.
[email protected]/Ajal69
change @ with a
Thank You to Those who joined my Patreon