Fans are well aware that the captivating characters stood out in Death Note due to their exceptional intelligence, but they should not forget about the characters’ strengths.
Death Note, after all, is full of grim stories that inspire people to push through hardship and achieve greatness. The prey and predators of Death Note wouldn’t have been successful if they didn’t have stamina.
This breakdown will focus on the coolest and most dangerous of the characters of Death Note to determine just how dangerous they really are. We will consider not only their strong potential but also their motivations and how psychologically flawed they truly are. It’s not just Shinigami we have to talk about, this also includes humans.
Strongest & Smartest Characters In Death Note Manga Series
20. Shinigami King
Even though he was mentioned briefly in the first run, he first showed up in full in “The C-Kira Story,” a one-shot manga that came out in February 2008.
The Shinigami King’s powers are so strong that his stats in the fan book “Death Note 13: How to Read” are called “immeasurable.” He didn’t show off his amazing powers in the main series, so comparing him to other Death Note characters wouldn’t be a good way to figure out how powerful he is.
Still, Shinigamis like Rem and Ryuk are afraid of this ancient old man. Even though he is the all-powerful God of Death, he has become lazy in the Shinigami Realm and has only resorted to being a king who doesn’t like to lose.
For example, the Shinigami King didn’t punish Ryuk when he tricked him into carrying two Death Notes. Instead, he turned a blind eye. He was also easily bribed with 13 juicy apples to give a Death Note to Shinigami Midora, also known as Shinigami Meadra.
In reality, the Shinigami King’s powers come from the fact that he can add rules to the Death Note, as shown in the one-shot “2019 Never Complete Exhibition” or “The a-Kira Story.”
So that a human, like Minoru Tanaka, couldn’t make money off of the Death Note, the Shinigami King made this rule: “Once the notebook is traded for money, both the buyer and seller will die.”
The Shinigami King, like Light, L, and Teru Mikami, hates to lose and likes to win games. Since he has the power to do it, why not cheat or use his power as the God of Death to avoid losing? So, in a way, the Shinigami King won without using his base-level strength.
Ryuk also indirectly helped him win. He used his power to trick a human opponent (Minoru) and cause a second human to lose a lot of money (the president). For the Shinigami King, it’s a win-win situation.
19. Light Yagami
Light Yagami, everyone’s favourite evil high school genius, is one of Death Note’s most threatening villains. Light is a high school student who, after acquiring a Death Note and having some free time on his hands, decides to “play God” and rid the world of crime.
His ability to trick L and Near shows his talent and intelligence.
In addition to his ambition and the power of the Death Note, his ability to manipulate others (most notably Misa) makes him a formidable opponent.
18. Near (Nate River)
Nate River, often known as Near, is L’s replacement. He is the commander of the group seeking down the Kiras, and he grew up in Wammy’s House. After some time, Near figures out that Light is really the first Kira.
The danger posed by Near is elevated by the fact that his skills surpass even L’s. He posed a greater threat than Mello did to Light and ultimately joined forces with Light’s boyhood enemy to put him down.
17. L (Lawliet)
L, the mysterious guy, has been able to remain under Light’s radar for so long thanks to his ability to successfully employ a variety of aliases.
L used his considerable skills as a super investigator to keep Light on his toes. L and Light both make efforts throughout the series to uncover the other’s true identity.
L’s death at the hands of those seeking to restore order was the initial impetus for the search for Kira. The character’s most menacing traits are his deadpan expression, stoic demeanour, and lightning-fast mind.
He’s brilliant, and one of the most challenging and unpredictable foes any hero might face.
16. Soichiro Yagami
Deputy Director Yagami’s greatest strength is not simply in leading the Japanese Task Force in its struggle against Kira, but in his own self-awareness and modesty.
Soichiro has been through a lot as a detective and investigator, but now that he’s old, his willpower is waning. Keep in mind that he had to rescue Sayu, his daughter, from Mello’s captors in the United States. What a courageous dad!
In a way, Mello got lucky when the old man declined to give Mello a full signature in the notebook. Even on his deathbed, he was not told that his son is a serial killer.
Light mocked Soichiro for being a failure as a father and a detective, but he fought until the end. And so, it is because solely to his guts, determination, and unflinching faith that he is included here!
15. Ryuk
Ryuk, the Shinigami we love, is also one of the most dangerous people in the series. After growing tired of his routine as a Shinigami, Ryuk resorts to trickery and manipulation to get a second Death Note from the Shinigami King.
In spite of his indifference to humanity, he finds their antics to be hilarious. Ryuk demonstrates his curiosity by constantly probing for details about Light’s upcoming moves and the reasoning behind his actions.
Finally, he has complete say over when Light’s life will expire because he controls Light’s longevity.
It is strange to think that Ryuk would release a Death Note into the human world, but it is even more frightening to consider the consequences. Leaving behind such a potent item for chance discovery? This careless move could have dire results.
Light, acting as a mini-dictator or a lunatic who believes himself to be nearly a “God,” utilises the Death Note to rid the world of crime.
Simply by treating the situation as a game of chance and then inspiring Light to press on with his mission, Ryuk poses a serious threat in the Death Note universe.
14. Watari (Quillsh Wammy)
Watari’s friendship with L predates the events of the series. He runs a home in England for talented and disadvantaged orphans under the moniker Quillish Wammy.
Besides his expertise in this seemingly harmless activity, Watari is also an expert spy and marksman.
The combination of Watari’s immaculate pseudonym and his abilities as a spy and marksman is enough to send chills down your spine.
Quillish Wammy may easily go undetected as a spy because of his peculiar appearance. Maybe only individuals with supernatural powers of telepathy can do it.
13. Rem
In Death Note, Rem is one of the more intriguing Shinigami. To make amends for Gelus’s fatal error (he breached Shinigami rule by intervening to save a human’s life), Rem resolves to deliver the Death Note to Misa, the girl whose life he saved.
While Ryuk thinks people are funny, Rem thinks they’re beyond contempt.
Rem is a threat since she plays a significant role in shaping Misa’s policy decisions. Rem goes to great lengths to watch for and protect Misa.
Having a Shinigami on your side gives you an advantage, as we’ll see in the following section.
12. Misa Amane
Misa Amane, commonly known as our famous model “Misa Misa,” is a fairly hazardous female character in the Death Note series.
After Gelus gives his life to save Misa, Rem gives Misa a Death Note, as we’ve discussed before. Light falls for the heroine after she exacts harsh vengeance on the burglar who murdered Misa’s parents.
She is so completely devoted to Light that she would do anything to help him fulfil his mission of ridding the world of evil.
Misa is a risky protagonist since she is a blind but dedicated believer in Light. In addition, she makes a life-for-life deal with Rem and Ryuk to acquire Shinigami eyes (allowing her to view the lifespan and identity of others).
In the same way that the Shinigami make Light more dangerous, she does the same thing to him.
11. Mello (Mihael Keehl)
Mihael Keehl (also known as “Mello”) is the second successor to L, and he takes a new tactic in his pursuit for Kira. Mello decides to go down a dark road and join the mafia.
Mello is one of Death Note’s most interesting and powerful protagonists because he is a nimble young man who prioritises boldness over timidity.
Through this he is introduced to the Shinigami Sidoh. Even after acquiring a Death Note, he decides against using it on Light.
Mello poses a threat because he is a trained killer and an extremely hasty one at that. His connections to the mafia made him more effective at devastation, but they also led to his downfall.
Light uses Mello’s contacts to learn Mello’s identity, and then has Kiyomi Takada kill him with the Death Note.
10. Teru Mikami
Teru Mikami, an unstable criminal prosecutor, is the most deadly person in Death Note. Teru is the fourth Kira and she adopts the cult of Light. He’s on the same path as Light, but he’s not afraid to destroy “lazy” individuals or former criminals.
Teru is a threat due to his control of the Death Note and his lack of compassion. When you factor in his unshakeable dedication to Light’s cause, you begin to grasp the full threat that lurks here. Teru would do anything to become the fourth Kira, as evidenced by his theft of Misa’s Death Note.
9. Stephen Gevanni (Stephen Loud)
Gevanni might not be as famous as Raye Penber or any other detectives from the Kira taskforce. But even just thinking about the fact of making a fake Death Note is too much to handle. But Gevanni worked all night to carry out Near’s orders perfectly in just one night!
On top of that, Teru Mikami, the prosecutor who Light Yagami used as a “Kira cover-up” and human shield, filled a page every day with the smallest font size you could ever see in Japanese calligraphy.
Gevanni did not use magic to copy the original, including Mikami’s deaths, in one night. But because he is persistent, patient, and determined, he turns out to be a good detective who can fake a Death Note in one night!
8. Anthony Rester ( Anthony Carter)
Rester, despite his impressive military background, fulfils Near’s shopping requests. There are finger puppets, darts, dice, matches, decks of cards, Tarot cards, and even Christmas trees on the list.
Naturally, Near has bought all of these playthings for himself so that he can enjoy the process of simulating the capture of Kira. Considering that Commander Rester has to spend more than US$5,000 satisfying his boss’ desires for puzzles, games, and toys, he may feel like he has a thankless task on his hands.
Nonetheless, Rester is a man of the army who respects his boss’ preferences no matter how stupid the requests; thus, making Rester a resourceful and loyal cornerstone for the SPK!
7. Aiber (Thierry Morrello)
L employs con man Thierry Morello, as Aiber. During his time working for L, he used the moniker Eraldo Coil. His expertise and standing in the Death Note community make him a threat. Before anything else, Aiber has access to any and all criminal records since, as a criminal, he is well-known in the criminal underworld.
He might not have been on screen very often. But many fans don’t know that Aiber has had to deal with liver cancer in order to stay alive.
In a psychological show like Death Note, the focus might not have been on his fatal illness. But when you think about how hard things were for him, don’t people who are fighting a disease that can kill them need a lot of heart and mind strength?
The second is that he can readily gather information from the opposite sex because he is “excellent with ladies.”
Being able to use a variety of aliases aids in evading detection. Aiber’s proficiency in other tongues is an additional asset, allowing him to potentially acquire intelligence from a wide variety of covert locales.
As a criminal, of course, he had a lot of advantages, and L really benefited from his ties in the criminal underworld.
6. Armonia Justin Beyondormason
Among the Shinigami’s, he is one of the strongest characters in Death Note. Others among the Shinigami look up to Armonia and value her much because of this. To tell you the truth, he was the one to break the news to Sidoh that his death note had been taken. (Chapter 65 of the Manga)
The Shinigami rulers listen to Justin since he is so highly esteemed in their domain. Of course they’ll stick with him, too.
His involvement in Death Note is minor, as he plays no part in the events taking place in the human world. But he definitely stands out as the most dynamic and original personality.
5. Raye Penber
The infamous FBI agent we all remember who was following Light yagami and Naomi Misora’s fiance. Raye is just a typical cop who does his best to do his job. Still, for an FBI agent, his intelligence is above average.
He lacks the intelligence to rival Kira, but he surpasses the creativity of the average person. As I’m sure everyone is aware, agents from the FBI and CIA possess formidable analytical and deductive abilities. To be fair, he did a fine job of sleuthing.
He was an FBI agent who, before getting married, made the decision to drop the Kira case. But it’s common knowledge that if Kira has your back, you won’t last long.
4. Naomi Misora
After graduating from college in September 2001, Misora decided to join the FBI. She advanced through the ranks of the FBI at an unprecedented rate for a female employee and became a special agent.
The suspect in the so-called “Los Angeles BB Serial Murder Case” was apprehended by Misora on August 22, 2002. Misora became engaged to Penber in October of 2003, after which she resigned from the FBI.
They hope to start a family in the United States, so Misora and Penber are getting married and setting up housekeeping there.
Penber tells Misora in his hotel room the night before he dies that they went to Japan to visit Misora’s parents and that she shouldn’t become too involved in Penber’s inquiry because he’s worried about her.
She thinks Kira was the last suspect Raye was following and that Kira is capable of murders other than heart attacks.
3. Kiyomi Takada
Kira’s alleged lover, Kiyomi Takada. Everyone here should be aware that Kira is heartless and so cannot have a romantic interest. Kiyomi, you really are quite smart. If Kira is counting on her, then she is not a useless person.
She was the former girlfriend of Light (Kira) and later became her spokesman. She helped facilitate Kira’s murder of multiple individuals by introducing her to Mikami.
She didn’t realise she was killing people because she was being manipulated.
Kiyomi, in a nutshell, is an adventurous and perceptive young lady. In a nutshell, we can say that she is impressive and meticulous.
Quite a few of Kira’s errands have been completed with her assistance. In my opinion, she has excellent powers of observation. Takada was able to observe and search for relevant details despite being confined in a truck.
2. Touta Matsuda
Well, you might be thinking how in the hell is Matsuda bravest characters?
If you remember the episode, where he pretended to be drunk and faked suicide his death from the apartment, and several of his boldest successful missions.
He had a key role in the fight against the bad guys in his capacity as an officer. The fact that he took decisive action against mafia members elevated his status. Touta is quite informed on everything going on, whether it’s in the office or not. Consequently, he is a media whiz.
He is a reliable individual who gives his all to his work. His belief that Kira is a decent man who does everything for the greater good demonstrates, however, that he is somewhat nave. When he learns that Kira is bad news, he takes action against him.
Well, he is aware of his own frailty, yet he never shies away from a challenge. This is due to his dedication to his job.
1. Halle Lidner
Halle portrays a covert CIA agent. In addition to Near and Mello, she also works with them, but she has only faith in herself. This is not to say, however, that she has no trust in them. In a nutshell, none of them have any influence over her. Halle is an expert at slipping through the cracks.
Halle is a driven young lady who enjoys competing against L in an effort to beat Kira. I hope you can get a sense of her intelligence from this. She saves Mello from some really dire situations. However, the fact that she can handle Near and Mello simultaneously is a testament to her abilities.
Incredibly, she manages to keep her spirits up through conversations with both of them.
