Chapter 25: Panic

"Ryuzaki."

"What is it, Watari?"

"Sakura TV... something big has happened," Watari said, turning on the TV.

"We are practically reporting this news as the hostages of Kira himself. This is not a prank. The videos are not a hoax," the host said calmly.

"What is this?" Raisa asked in disbelief. "They're joking right?" Raisa's eyes were glued to the screen, hoping Sakura TV was only posting fake Kira related material for ratings.

'But they weren't,' Raisa realized as the anchormen 'Kira' claimed he would kill began to drop dead.

"This is Kira?" she whispered, a sense of dread filling her. "We have to stop the broadcast!"

"We can't! The line is busy!" Matsuda cried out, clutching the phone.

"Damn it! I'll stop them myself!" Ukita shouted determinedly, running towards the door.

"No, Ukita-san!" Raisa yelled, but it was too late. He was already out of the room. Raisa's stomach tossed and turned, and she suddenly felt extremely sick. She was ninety-five percent certain he wouldn't be coming back.

The Task Force members watched the television screen nervously, hoping Ukita would stop the broadcast. "This just in, there is someone lying in front of Sakura TV station's front door!"

"Ukita!" Aizawa yelled, rushing to the screen. "Damn you, Kira!" he cussed, turning to dash out of the room.

"Stop, Aizawa-san," Ryuzaki commanded, causing him to freeze. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To where Ukita is. I'll retrieve those tapes myself," Aizawa said coldly, fists balling up.

"If you go there now, you'll die too," Ryuzaki said, peering at the man indifferently through his long bangs.

Aizawa glared at the detective. "Are you telling me to sit here and do nothing?" he demanded, anger coursing through his veins. Raisa watched the exchange fearfully, anxious because of the tense atmosphere.

"I'm telling you to calm down," Ryuzaki explained. "I want to stop the broadcast too, but anyone who goes there will suffer the same fate as Ukita-san."

"That means our fake badges didn't work," Aizawa argued. "Did our names leak out?"

"Maybe," Raisa admitted, shifting in her seat uncomfortably. "But if that were true, wouldn't we all be dead by now?"

"I said that 'Kira needs both a name and face to kill,' but after seeing this, I have to say that there is now the possibility of Kira being able to kill using a face alone," Ryuzaki said. "It is undeniable that Ukita-san died as a direct result of going there. He died in front of the TV station, and we all saw it on TV."

"Do you think Kira's there?" Raisa asked worriedly.

"It's possible he merely set up surveillance," Ryuzaki said.

"If we know where Kira is, shouldn't we go to arrest him?" Aizawa demanded.

"I'll say this again, charging in there will get us killed. Please try to understand."

"I can't… Ukita was murdered!" Aizawa exploded, grabbing Ryuzaki's shoulder roughly. "Didn't you say you would risk your life to arrest Kira?!"

"Aizawa-san!" Raisa screamed, jumping out of her seat. "Stop!" She rushed over to the two men and grasped Aizawa's arm, trying to pull him away from Ryuzaki. Aizawa, in his anger, pushed the twelve year old aside and she landed painfully on her butt.

"Risking your life," Ryuzaki breathed, "and throwing it away are two very different things." Aizawa made a move to protest but stopped when he noticed Ryuzaki's slight shaking. Ryuzaki gripped his legs tightly, the tendons in his hands sticking out sharply. "I feel the same as you, but we must remain calm. I can't allow you to die too."

Raisa picked herself off the ground, and teared up slightly. Aizawa noticed and hurriedly apologized after realizing what he did, but Raisa pointedly ignored him, watching the screen instead. Her heart leapt up in surprise, and she gasped as a bus suddenly crashed through the doors of the station.