Touta Matsuda

Touta Matsuda is one of the characters in Death Note.

Matsuda is the youngest and mostly inexperienced member of the Japanese Task Force and NPA. His lack of policing sometimes hinder the investigation. His reckless attitude can gets him into certain sticky situations, much to the annoyance of his co-workers. L Lawliet and Shuichi Aizawa views of him as a naive, young detective lacking seriousness in work.

Despite being inexperienced, he is able to bring down several mafia members who were holding death notes; and showing great proficiency in tight situations. As Taro Matsui, he infiltrates as Misa Amane's manager in the face of Yotsuba. Matsuda also was devoted to Soichiro Yagami, Light's father, whom he sees as a mentor.

Though he had sympathy for Kira's followers, and thought that Kira have great intentions at heart, Matsuda was enraged when Light insults his own father, apathetic about his death. In response, he shoots Light five times (non-fatally) to stop him from writing Near's real name down.

Matsuda is also one of the few characters that survives the events of the anime/manga, alongside Near and a few of the other task force members. The manga epilogue shows that he continues to work as a member of the police force. Although he refuses to believe that Light was Kira, and that Near was involved with Teru Mikami's death.