Chapter 16

Old Man of the Land and Aria of the Night Sky (Part 8) (土翁と空夜のアリア⑧, Tsuchi Okina to Kuu Ya no Aria 8) is the sixteenth chapter in the D.Gray-man series written and illustrated by Katsura Hoshino.

Synopsis
A hole is blown straight through the side of the town of Mater. As the Akuma breaks apart and the light of the explosion fades, the shard of Innocence, the heart of the doll Lala, arcs through the sky before falling back down and landing beside the exhausted bodies of the injured Allen Walker and Yu Kanda.

Allen reaches out for the Innocence, begging for Guzol to still be alive for Lala.

Some time later, Komui Lee remarks over the phone to Kanda that Italy is a beautiful place. When Kanda asks what his point is, Komui whines that he’s jealous of Allen and Kanda for hanging around and relaxing after the battle. Kanda tells Komui to shut up and blames Allen.

When Komui asks about Lala’s condition, Kanda notes that the doll isn’t the same “Lala” it used to be, and that it will probably stop soon.

A doctor bursts into the room to find Kanda removing himself from his intravenous catheter and taking off his bandages, noting in shock that Kanda has recovered much faster than he could have possibly thought.

Komui, meanwhile, notes that Kanda took longer to heal than usual and warns Kanda that if it’s taking longer to recover than “it” is starting to become non-operational. As Komui tells Kanda to be careful, a close-up is shown of the symbol that is on Kanda’s chest.

As Komui then begins to tell Kanda about his next mission, Kanda and Toma walk outside of the hospital and pass an alley, where a mother is cradling her child. The mother notes to herself that the child never sleeps without being sung a lullaby, and wonders if the wind has anything to do with it.

In the nearby abandoned town of Mater, it is revealed in a flashback that even though Lala had the Innocence that was her heart returned to her, she no longer held the memories of the real Lala.

Lala had greeted Guzol as she had when she first met him, and asked him if he wanted to hear a song.

Guzol, remembering all of the times Lala offered to sing for him, tearfully asked for a song without trying to remind her of who he is. Guzol then told Lala he loved her and died.

A perpetually smiling and now deteriorating Lala wondered if Guzol had fallen asleep, and began singing a lullaby to him. She would sing for days, all while Allen sat outside of the chamber she and Guzol were in.

In the present day, Kanda walks up to Allen and informs him that he (Kanda) will be going off on his next mission, and that Allen is to deliver the Innocence back to the Black Order.

Allen, not lifting his head from his arms, simply conveys that he understands.

Kanda points out that if listening to the doll sing is too painful that Allen can just take the Innocence and stop the doll, as it really isn’t Lala anyway.

Allen insists that he will honor Lala and Guzol’s promise to one another, meaning he will not interfere.

Kanda calls Allen soft, saying that as Exorcists they are not “saviors”, but “destroyers”.

Allen answers, “…I know. But I…” and both he and Kanda pause when a gust of wind blows, Lala’s voice no longer heard.

“On the third night after Guzol’s death, the doll stopped singing.”

Allen walks into the chamber to find Lala frozen in place over Guzol, her mouth open to sing but her body no longer functioning.

As he kneels to take the Innocence, Lala suddenly turns to him, her appearance as it had been before and no longer deteriorating as she thanks Allen for “letting her sing until she broke”. Lala says that she and Guzol’s promise has been fulfilled, then collapses in Allen’s arms, a simple, deteriorating doll once more.

When Kanda, accompanied by Toma, asks Allen what is wrong, Allen tearfully finishes his earlier statement, telling Kanda that he “wants to be a destroyer who can save others”.