Ren Amimaya

Ren Amimaya (also known as Joker,) is the protagonist of Persona 5 and Persona 5 Strikers and the sixth in the Persona series.

He is a student at Shujin High School who becomes a member of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts after accidentally entering someone's heart with his new friend Ryuji Sakamoto. From then on, him and Ryuji join forces with other Persona Users as the Phantom Thieves to take on the corrupt adults of this world and steal their hearts. Eventually, the group becomes in leagues with Goro Akechi, and they plan on taking down their biggest target yet: the politician Shido. They steal his heart, but are double crossed by Akechi, and are forced to turn on him. It's revealed that the plot for Shido to take over and destroy the Phantom Thieves was perpetrated by the God of Control, Yaldabaoth. The Phantom Thieves defeat him in order to take back reality and give the control to take back their lives to the people of Japan.

He is a Persona-User who awakens the Persona Arsène after being attacked by Shadows, which later evolves into Satanael.

Physical Appearance
The protagonist appears as a tall young man of slim to athletic build. He has a pale complexion with unkempt, wavy black hair that falls over his eyes. His eyes are gray and have long eyelashes. Despite his messy hair and slouched posture, he wears all of his clothes primly and properly.

For most of his civilian outfits, he also wears a set of large black glasses. The glasses are later revealed to be for aesthetic purposes and to help him maintain an unassuming image, as he did not need them before nor after his probation. However, when his glasses are removed, his eyes are revealed to be sharp and give off an intense gaze.

Occasional Appearances
During the Summer, Ren wears his school uniform without the jacket, which is his white button down and uniform pants.

During the fall he wears jeans and a light black jacket over his white t-shirt.

During the Winter in Persona 5 Royal, he wears a large black overcoat and a blue scarf.

During Shido's Palace, Joker undergoes a transformation that turns him into a rat.

In the cognitive world, Ren appears just as he did during his interrogation, beaten and battered.

When he awakens to his Persona, his Shadow self briefly appears, being him with yellow eyes.

History
The protagonist is a second-year high school student who transfers to Shujin Academy in Tokyo, after a false assault charge issued by a high-profile politician, which caused him to end up with a one-year probation sentence. Prior to the incident, it is stated that he lived in a rural area. He lives in a coffee shop called Café Leblanc, located in Yongen-Jaya and owned by Sojiro Sakura, an acquaintance of his parents during his probation.

However, on his way to his new school, he discovers the existence of the Metaverse and becomes the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, a group whose purpose is to steal the hearts of corrupt adults in order to reform society. Initially, the group he founded was only to put an end to Suguru Kamoshida's vicious and predatory abuses against the school's students. The initial members consisted of Ryuji Sakamoto and Ann Takamaki, who were victims of Kamoshida, as well as Morgana, a mysterious cat-like creature who wants to discover his origins and restore his true form. However, due to reencountering the corrupt politician who forced him into probation while celebrating the end of Kamoshida's tyranny, he officially founded the group in earnest. The members who later joined him include: Yusuke Kitagawa, Makoto Niijima, Futaba Sakura, Haru Okumura, and Goro Akechi.

During the game's prologue, the protagonist manages to infiltrate a Casino, successfully stealing a briefcase before beginning to make his escape, all the while attracting the attention of the security forces in order to allow his companions to escape the other way. He makes quick work of a Shadow taking the form of a Moloch before he continues escaping, though shortly after jumping out of a window, he is cornered by the police and is subsequently captured, being informed that he was "sold out" by someone.

Later, he is found in an interrogation room, bound to a chair, having been drugged by his captors. The apparent leading investigator splashes him with water in order to wake him up and knocks him off of the chair, as he reads off his list of crimes: obstruction of business, intimidation, defamation, preparing and carrying weapons and even murder. Afterward, he asks the protagonist to write down his name, as a confession to the investigation. The protagonist complies, though the investigator tells him that he will put him through so much pain until he has paid for his crimes. The protagonist, not remembering anything at the time, questions if he really did commit all these misdeeds.

Shortly after signing his name, Sae Niijima, a prosecutor leading his case, enters the room to interrogate him. She is opposed to the interrogators after seeing their blatant attempts to muddy his memory. The two seem to share a history, and she questions him how he came to learn about "that world," and how exactly his "techniques" regarding his crimes work. As the protagonist seems to ponder how to answer, he catches sight of a blue butterfly and hears a voice calling out to him, stating that his fate was already predetermined, but there was hope for him by recalling his memories.

After that, the protagonist awakens on the train bound for Shibuya, as if the events were all a foreboding dream. During the ride, he recalls an incident where he witnessed a woman being sexually harassed by a man and stopped him. In his drunken stupor, the man accidentally fell without the protagonist touching him and injured his head. He blamed it on the protagonist and forced the woman to testify that it was the protagonist's fault. He later discovers that the man was Masayoshi Shido, a corrupt politician who abruptly rose to control virtually all of Japan and commits blatantly treasonous acts for his profit.

As a result of the protagonist's intervention, the incident went down on his permanent record, and he was subsequently expelled from his school. At the court hearing, he was sentenced until next spring and was ordered to transfer schools with Shujin Academy being the only school that would accept the protagonist with his current criminal record, which his parents approved. Needing a place to stay, Sojiro Sakura was approached to house the protagonist during his probation, due to connections between his customers and the protagonist's parents. However, due to the protagonist's criminal record, Sojiro does so only begrudgingly.

After he arrives at the Shibuya Crosswalk, a mysterious application starts up, much to the protagonist's confusion. The world around him slows to a halt, and a fiery blue figure manifests before his eyes, followed by a vision of the flames developing a red grin, and himself with yellow eyes. Afterward, as time resumes, the protagonist deletes the application, and makes his way to Yongen-Jaya Station, and later to the alleyway, where his new caretaker resides. He arrives to find Sojiro speaking with customers.

Sojiro is surprised that the "punk kid" he was asked to look after is the protagonist, based on his gentlemanly and timid appearance. He shows the protagonist his new room; despite its rather large size, Sojiro says he has to be the one to clean it up. He also touches upon the details of the incident for a brief moment, blaming him for getting involved in the affairs of adults, before leaving him alone to clean up the room, though he also warns the protagonist that if he causes any trouble, he will kick him out.

As the protagonist prepares for bed, he recalls the incident, thinking to himself that he simply couldn't ignore the woman being harassed. He hears his phone ringing, and to his surprise, he finds that the mysterious application from before is still there, despite having deleted it earlier. He shortly falls asleep afterward. Later, he awakens in the Velvet Room and finds himself in prison garb, even bound in handcuffs with a ball and chain on his leg.

Igor welcomes him to his Velvet Room, and the twins tell him that he is still asleep in the real world. Caroline scolds him to stand up straight as Igor is present. Igor greets him, explaining that the Velvet Room is a place that exists between dream and reality, and is only accessible to those who have, in some form, made a contract. He then further explains that he brought the protagonist here in order to discuss an important matter that will affect his life. He also expresses surprise at the state of the Velvet Room, mentioning that its form represents the state of the guest's heart. Igor also refers to the protagonist as a "Prisoner of Fate," and that ruin awaits him in the future.

Igor informs him that there is a way to avoid ruin, stating that he must be "rehabilitated into a free man." He also asks the protagonist if he is ready to fight against the world's corruption. After the protagonist gives his answer, Igor expresses his delight, saying that he will observe the miracle of his "rehabilitation." He then introduces his newest attendants: Caroline and Justine, his prison guards. Caroline tells him that fighting is pointless, whereas Justine informs him that, as his guard, it is their duty to protect him, but only if he is obedient. Igor states that he will explain the twins' importance another time, as dawn has already approached in the real world.

First Heist: Suguru Kamoshida
"First off... I'd like to begin by congratulating you. You have encountered allies who share your aesthetics, and you have found your place in reality. The time has come... Your rehabilitation will soon begin. I shall explain it to you now... You have a special potential. However, that must be refined into a useful power. It is weak now, but refining it shall grant you the strength to stand against the coming ruin. ...That is the rehabilitation cast upon you. There are various means by which you may gain the power to resist the ruin. Fighting Shadows and gaining experience is one way. The fusion process I taught you prior is another. Thanks to the contracts you've formed, your heart is steadily gaining the power of opposition. It seems the rehabilitation is going well. This is a truly joyous occasion... I shall grant you an ability befitting of your newfound growth. Consider it a gift. May the devotion to your rehabilitation grow even deeper. ...I have high hopes of you."

—Igor to the protagonist, Persona 5

On his way to school the next day, the protagonist once again opens the mysterious app in his phone and encounters Ann Takamaki, who was being invited to a ride by Suguru Kamoshida. She reluctantly goes in, leaving the protagonist behind who humbly rejected his invitation to join, and meets a delinquent-like boy, Ryuji Sakamoto, who was calling Kamoshida a "perverted teacher." He would confront the protagonist with a threatening look, in fear of him ratting him out to Kamoshida, only to realize he's new to the school. However, Ryuji accidentally used the word "Castle," causing the Metaverse Navigator to fire up. Although the landscape around Shujin was mostly normal, when the boys reached the school, they noticed that the school had literally become a castle.

When inside the unknown castle, the duo was instantly intercepted by a horde of armed knights accompanying a scantily clad version of Kamoshida with yellow eyes who wears only a gaudy, red crown, a kingly robe with hearts printed on it, and a speedo. He instantly throws the two into an underground cell and orders their "execution," starting with Ryuji first based on their past vendetta. Kamoshida's knight-like Shadows immediately knock him down and apprehend him, holding him defenseless for Kamoshida to repeatedly throw punches at him. Once Ryuji was thoroughly beaten, he collapses to the ground and Kamoshida spits on him. The strange Kamoshida quickly orders his execution only for the protagonist to fruitlessly interfere. Kamoshida kicks the protagonist against the wall, his knights ready to kill Ryuji at any moment while holding the protagonist to the floor.

In this moment, a blue butterfly tells him that he is trapped in an "unjust game" with almost no winning chances, although she can lend him her power. Another voice, (presumably the protagonist's Shadow Self) questions him if he is just going to keep quiet, reminding him of the incident that led to his probation. Recalling that event, the protagonist comes to the conclusion that he did not make the wrong choice to save the woman. In response to his determination, the voice awakens and manifests into his Persona, Arsène. Kamoshida is forced to halt trying to kill Ryuji and goes after the protagonist instead. His knights break into a pair of Jack-o'-Lanterns that the protagonist effortlessly defeats. The guard drops the jail key and Kamoshida confronts the protagonist, only for Ryuji to knock him down and run with the protagonist, locking Shadow Kamoshida in his cell. While escaping, they also encounter a mysterious cat-like creature, Morgana, who was captured and asks to be freed in exchange for showing them the way out, as well as aiding the protagonist in battle.

Once the protagonist and Ryuji escape the palace and return to reality, they confront Kamoshida about his castle, only for them to discover Kamoshida has no connection with his other self. Regardless, he has forced the protagonist's classmate, Yuuki Mishima, to spread rumors about him regarding the circumstances behind his probation to the whole school. On the next day, the boys enter the castle again to explore Kamoshida Palace's Dungeon area with Morgana's help so they may confirm the situation. However, on their way out again, Kamoshida pulls off an ambush, causing the protagonist and Morgana to be overwhelmed by his Shadows.

When his knights are about to execute the protagonist and Morgana as Ryuji hopelessly watches, he awakens Captain Kidd as well. However, after Kamoshida runs out of Shadows again, he summons a scantly clad version of Ann to spite Ryuji, implying that he didn't consider her anything other than a sex slave. On the next day, the volleyball rally commences and Kamoshida can be blatantly seen purposely spiking Mishima in broad daylight, and it's implied that he was using the rally as an excuse to punish students. Therefore, the students participating in the rally all end up heavily battered, although they are generally enabling his cruelty by avoiding trying to speak out.

The protagonist asks Ann, who is rumored to be dating Kamoshida, about this and she confirms that Kamoshida is trying to force himself on her. Since no other students are willing to speak up against Kamoshida, Morgana proposes to make Kamoshida admit his wrongdoings by stealing his Treasure in his castle, calling it a Palace, which represents the source of his distorted desires; in this case, lust. However, Morgana warns that if they kill Shadow Kamoshida, the real Kamoshida will suffer a mental shutdown and may die, prompting the protagonist and Ryuji to back out and think things over.

The protagonist and Ryuji confront Kamoshida after Ann's friend, Shiho Suzui, attempted suicide due to no longer being able to put up with the physical and sexual abuse Kamoshida subjects her to. After being confronted by the protagonist, Ryuji and Mishima, Kamoshida retaliates by threatening the three with expulsion, forcing the former two to carry through with Morgana's heist plan. The three of them are then joined by Ann who wants to avenge Shiho. To make Shadow Kamoshida's treasure materialize, Ryuji pins several copies of a calling card on the school board, addressed to Kamoshida under the name "Phantom Thieves of Hearts," enraging Shadow Kamoshida in his Palace. They succeed in stealing Kamoshida's treasure, causing him to have a change of heart and confess all of his crimes in front of the whole school. Afterward, the bad rumors about the protagonist and Ann are no longer spread and the threat of expulsion is lifted.

They decide to celebrate their success at an expensive restaurant by using the money from Kamoshida's treasure, a gold athlete's medal which the protagonist pawned off at the Untouchable airsoft shop. At the restaurant, the protagonist and Ryuji meet a man named Masayoshi Shido who rudely looks down on them. The protagonist notices that Shido's voice reminds him of the man who falsely accused him, but quickly dismisses this thought. It is also apparent that Shido does not remember placing a lawsuit on the protagonist during this encounter. Their encounter with Shido convinces the group to continue their work as Phantom Thieves to steal the corrupt hearts of adults and reform society so there will be no more victims like them.

Second Heist: Ichiryusai Madarame
"You have expelled one who was stained in vanity. You are now one step closer to your rehabilitation. It's a delightful thing indeed. However, that man's remarks are concerning. It seems another has made their way into the Metaverse. That is beyond my knowledge... But your rehabilitation is progressing smoothly. ...That is for certain. May the devotion to your rehabilitation grow even deeper. ...I have high hopes of you."

—Igor to the protagonist, Persona 5

Mishima, who knows of the protagonist's identity as one of the Phantom Thieves, creates a website that also serves as a request board for the Phantom Thieves to take on missions. Since not many people believe in their existence, the Phantom Thieves decide to change a more well-known adult’s heart to increase their notoriety. An opportunity arises when they explore Mementos by the request of Morgana and discover the Shadow of a former apprentice of Madarame, Natsuhiko Nakanohara, a municipal ward who had been stalking his ex-girlfriend in a twisted way of coping with his former teacher, the great artist Ichiryusai Madarame, scamming him and ruining his life.

After they defeat his Shadow, he approaches them in the real world to tell them that Madarame actually steals his students' paintings, resulting in one of his students committing suicide after his work was stolen. Nakanohara asks them to stop Madarame before he can steal the credit and livelihood of Yusuke, his latest disciple. Yusuke stalks Ann all the way from the Shibuya station to the ground floor and asks her to model for him. After Nakanohara's account, the Phantom Thieves accept Yusuke's offer in order to learn more about Madarame.

When the group directly asks Yusuke about Madarame's plagiarism, Yusuke fiercely defends his teacher and angrily dismisses the group. After receiving more information from Nakanohara and locating Madarame's Palace, Ann and Morgana attempt to find proof of Madarame's crimes while under the guise of modeling for Yusuke. Ann finds proof of Madarame's plagiarism in his storage room, which is accidentally revealed to Yusuke. They both press Madarame about it, which forces him to threaten them by calling his private security company to arrest them. They escape from Madarame by entering his Palace, but Yusuke gets dragged in as well. Even as Yusuke still does not believe his master's crimes after seeing evidence in his Palace, his teacher's Shadow arrives on the scene and flaunts his crimes and how little he has in regard for his students, angering Yusuke and Persona awakens. After defeating the Shadows and leaving the Palace, Yusuke decides to join the Phantom Thieves, wanting to reform his teacher.

The Phantom Thieves send a calling card to Madarame in his exhibit, angering him. As a precaution, he replaces the treasure with a henohenomoheji and shows the Thieves his real treasure, the real "Sayuri" painting and flaunts his atrocities against Yusuke and his mother to them. This angers Yusuke to the point that he no longer feels remorse opposing him, and Madarame transforms into Azazel and attacks the Thieves, in his new form of four floating paintings forming a face. Despite this, he was soundly defeated.

After defeating Shadow Madarame and stealing his treasure, Madarame reveals that there's a third party besides them inside the Palace, but Madarame only reveals the person to wear a black mask. Yusuke recovers Madarame's treasure, the real "Sayuri" painting that his mother painted before her death and the Thieves escape the collapsing museum in one piece. No longer having a home due to not wishing to live with Madarame anymore, Yusuke stays with the protagonist at Café Leblanc for one night, but eventually moves into the dormitory at Kosei High School. As thanks to Sojiro for allowing him to stay temporarily, he gifts "Sayuri" to him, which is then hung on display at the entrance of the café.

Third Heist: Junya Kaneshiro
"You've defeated the repulsive fiend of gluttony this time. *chuckle* Well done. I am glad to see you have devoted yourself to your rehabilitation. Do you recall the whispers about that strange man? Indeed... I speak of another with powers similar to yours. If you are to complete your rehabilitation, you may encounter him eventually... *chuckle* Yet another thing for me to look forward to. I shall grant you an ability befitting of your newfound growth. Consider it a gift. It would be greatly troubling if you were to not strengthen your abilities."

—Igor to the protagonist, Persona 5

Following Madarame's confession on live television, the Phantom Thieves' activities become known and attract many people, particularly high school detective Goro Akechi and student council president Makoto Niijima. During a school trip to a TV station in Akasaka Mitsuke, the protagonist meets Akechi, who reveals his disdain towards the Phantom Thieves' actions. Despite this, the protagonist gets acquainted with Akechi, after catching his attention with a surprising response to an audience interview question.

Makoto quickly becomes suspicious of the protagonist and his friends, secretly following them on the orders of the principal of Shujin Academy, and finally gets the proof she needs in the form of a recording of Ryuji who declares themselves as Phantom Thieves. She blackmails the protagonist to take her to their meeting place and demands the Phantom Thieves to show her their justice, promising to delete the recording if they can prove her wrong. Left with no options, they take on her request to investigate a mafia boss who is extorting money from several Shujin students. Despite this, the group fails to track this person, as his henchmen refused to reveal anything about him.

Their investigation leads them to a reporter named Ichiko Ohya leaking his name as Junya Kaneshiro to the protagonist. The next day, the Phantom Thieves enter Kaneshiro's Palace but cannot find his treasure since the bank that acts as its main body is too high up in the air, flying above the city and sucking up cash from the civilians below. Makoto brazenly manages to bring the thieves to Kaneshiro himself, but in her hubris, Kaneshiro gains the upper hand by taking a picture of them in his club surrounded by drugs and alcohol. Threatening to spread the photo across social media, which would inevitably reach the school administration and result in everyone's expulsion, Kaneshiro forces them to bring him a hefty sum of three million yen in just three weeks.

As an apology, Makoto requests to join them in their heist to make up for her mistake, allowing access to the flying bank itself, because Makoto is now a "customer" of Kaneshiro. Shadow Kaneshiro lures the Thieves into a trap and attempts to kill them, then corners them and gloats about how is he going to sell Sae and Makoto as prostitutes, causing Makoto's composure to finally break, awakening to her own Persona. The Thieves defeat his shadow guards and escape the Palace.

After the Phantom Thieves locate Kaneshiro's treasure plastering hundreds of calling cards all over Shibuya in a brazen bid to get his attention, a final confrontation between the Thieves and Shadow Kaneshiro commences, and they successfully defeat him and destroy his "Piggytron" robot. However, he leaves them with a warning of a third party that manipulates Palaces for their own ends without caring for the consequences. A day later, the real Kaneshiro promises to delete the photos and soon after turns himself in to the police.

Fourth Heist: Futaba Sakura
"It seems you freed the heart of a frenzied girl and saved her from her haunted past. *chuckle* Another step has been taken to rehabilitation... You are progressing quite nicely. By the by, more curious information has found its way to your ears. A scientist's research... It seems that world may secretly be known after all. Furthermore, that very research has been stolen and is now used by those with malicious intent... I wonder how this will change the approach you take toward your rehabilitation... *chuckle* Allow me to grant you a new power worthy of your current self. Though you have my aid, be sure not to let your guard down. Otherwise you may get swept off your feet... ...We shall meet again in the near future."

—Igor to the protagonist, Persona 5

The Phantom Thieves' success in changing Kaneshiro's heart begins to attract further attention to them, leading them to be publicly denounced by the international hacking group Medjed, urging the Phantom Thieves to stop their heists or else they will purge all of their supporters with a huge hacking attack. The protagonist then receives an unknown chat from a mysterious hacker called Alibaba who requests him to steal a certain someone's heart and in exchange, they will take care of Medjed. Should he refuse, they will leak his identity to the media.

The protagonist and the others think that the chat is a mere prank, but Alibaba proves themselves that they do know about the protagonist by leaving a calling card in Leblanc. Alibaba requests him to steal the heart of a girl named Futaba Sakura, who is revealed to be related to Sojiro. Since information about Futaba is lacking, the protagonist tries to ask Sojiro, but he refuses to tell him anything and threatens to kick him out if he presses further. The protagonist tries to ask Alibaba for more details and asks to meet them, but his request leads Alibaba to abruptly cancel their request.

The Phantom Thieves think that the problem has been solved, with Alibaba seemingly out of the picture, until they returned from the Kaneshiro heist celebrations and Akechi informs them that Medjed has declared an all-out war against them, with dire consequences for the infrastructure of Japan if the thieves were to remain silent. As a result, the protagonist has no choice but to once again try to contact Alibaba. Makoto correctly deduces that Alibaba is actually Futaba herself, which is confirmed when Sojiro finally explains Futaba's situation after the protagonist and the thieves catch a glimpse of her when visiting Sojiro's house. They confront Futaba and ask to make a deal with her again, which she agrees to.

After obtaining the keywords necessary to enter her Palace, the Phantom Thieves enter her Palace, which is a giant pyramid surrounded by an endless desert. Unlike other Palaces so far, it is not born from corruption, but from Futaba's severe depression, her repressed trauma surrounding the death of her mother, and the belief that she deserved to die alone in her home, believing it to be her "tomb." At first, the thieves do not adopt their Metaverse attire, as they are not seen as threats, but after meeting with Shadow Futaba, their thief outfits manifest and they are forced to run from a boulder summoned by the Palace that threatens to crush them.

As they progress through the Palace, the party finds several murals, each depicting some twisted memory of Futaba's. The first depicts men in black reading her a note, later revealed to be a suicide note. The second is her watching her mother, Wakaba Isshiki, being struck by a car, claimed to have been her suicide, and the third is Futaba trying to get her mother's attention. The thieves' path to the treasure, however, is blocked by a barrier surrounding the end of the great hallway, as a result of Futaba's unwillingness to allow anyone in her room. The group returns to reality, hoping to find a way for Futaba to allow them in and remove the barrier. They succeed in doing so, and through their first face-to-face encounter with her, they learn that Wakaba was a researcher of "cognitive psience," a study on one's perception of reality and the existence of a mysterious "cognitive world," which seems to be the Metaverse.

After leaving behind a calling card for Futaba, the Phantom Thieves reach the Pharaoh's Tomb, where the Treasure is supposed to lie, but are attacked by a cognition of what Futaba perceives as her mother; a Sphinx who hates and loathes her for killing her, and tries to murder anyone who disturbs Futaba's resting place. Its incredible agility and stamina easily overpower the Phantom Thieves, but the tide of battle changes after Futaba enters her own Palace with the Metaverse Navigator.

Meeting her own Shadow, she manages to overcome her self-loathing and realizes that she has been manipulated into believing a lie that ruined her life, and her Shadow transforms into her Persona Necronomicon, allowing the tables to turn as Necronomicon creates a ballista that allows the Thieves to effectively damage the cognition. They successfully manage to defeat the cognition with Futaba's help, though, to their confusion, the Treasure is not inside the coffin. As the Palace begins to crumble after Futaba leaves, Morgana realizes that Futaba herself was the Treasure, and with the real Futaba being inside her own Palace for so long, it has become unstable.

The group successfully escapes the collapsing pyramid, landing in a heap in front of Sojiro's store. As the others distract Sojiro, Makoto and the protagonist check on Futaba, who is unconscious. Fearing the worst, the protagonist calls Tae Takemi, a doctor in Yongen-Jaya. After a brief examination, Takemi states that Futaba has unnaturally low stamina and strength, most likely due to her shut-in nature. Though the group is worried about her well-being, Sojiro explains that this is normal for Futaba, and can sleep for days on end after periods of exertion.

On the day Medjed is supposed to destroy Japan's economy and begin a 'cleansing' of Phantom Thief supporters, Futaba hacks into their website in just a few hours, leaving behind the signature logo of the Phantom Thieves.

Afterward, the protagonist takes the helm in assisting Futaba with coming out of her shell around other people, particularly himself and the rest of the Phantom Thieves, who want to be on better terms with her. This culminates in a trip to Miura Beach where the group takes a much needed break from the stress of thief activities, and the protagonist assists Ryuji in his efforts to pick up women on the beach.

Futaba, due to her hacking skills and growing chemistry with the group, is asked to join them in their heists. She agrees, if only to find the one responsible for murdering her mother and stealing her research. Futaba permanently joins the party as a combat support and surveillance hub, resulting in Morgana's navigator role becoming obsolete.

Fifth Heist: Kunikazu Okumura
"First, I'd like to congratulate you for expelling the one proud of their greed... ...Or so I'd like to say, but something odd seems to have happened. Who knows...? However, don't you sense it? The malicious will of another... It seems a contingency has occurred. At this rate, your rehabilitation cannot be completed... though I doubt that will be the case. I truly look forward to seeing how you overcome this predicament... ...We shall meet again."

—Igor to the protagonist, Persona 5

Their victory against Medjed caused a boom in popularity, resulting in massive international support and even merchandise to capitalize on their success. School resumes shortly after and Shujin Academy takes a trip to Hawaii, along with Kosei High School making an unscheduled detour there, where the Phantom Thieves witness firsthand the extent that their exploits have reached overseas. On the school trip, the protagonist may choose to spend the last evening in Hawaii with a female Confidant that he has reached a certain rank with, or Ryuji and Mishima, with Yusuke joining the three of them shortly.

Unfortunately, back in Japan, Principal Kobayakawa dies when he is hit by a car in the middle of a crosswalk, leading some to believe that the Phantom Thieves murdered him for covering up Kamoshida's crimes. They have little time to dwell on the matter, however, as the Phan-Site has made numerous requests for targets, the one with the largest result in the poll is Kunikazu Okumura, the wealthy CEO of Okumura Foods, which owns the popular Big Bang Burger food chain. Suspiciously, much of Big Bang's competition has fallen out under mysterious circumstances, leading the group to believe that Okumura may be behind the incidents, employing mental shutdowns to stifle opposition.

However, the group begins to doubt whether they should go with the plan of infiltrating his Palace just because of the general public's consensus. However, a confused Morgana misinterprets their intentions as indolence and irresponsibility, which causes an argument (further spurred by Ryuji's thoughtless comments and his own growing insecurities). Feeling shunned and useless due to not knowing who he is or what role he plays in the team, Morgana leaves the group and tries to take Okumura's heart by himself. The group becomes greatly worried about him, and head to Okumura's headquarters believing that they might find him in Okumura's Palace.

Thanks to Futaba, who discovered the "distortion" of the Palace, they manage to enter quickly, which resembles a giant spaceport on another planet. Shortly after infiltrating the Palace, though, they are blocked by a door with a biometric scanner, leaving them unable to proceed without someone related to Okumura on their side. Then, to their surprise, Morgana appears alongside another thief, who proclaims herself as the "Beauty Thief." At first, the group believes that she is the Black Mask that Madarame and Kaneshiro spoke of, though they later learn that her stoic nature was only because of her forgetting the lines they prepared in advance. To the thieves' shock, Morgana's partner is able to bypass the biometric scanner, evidently having a connection to the Palace ruler, though the numerous Shadows behind the gates forces both groups to retreat.

Deciding to investigate who this new thief is, and under the idea of her being a Shujin student, the group investigates the roster of the female student body. They eventually find a match - Haru Okumura, the only daughter of Kunikazu Okumura. Makoto and the protagonist encounter her on school grounds and try to ask her to join them, though Haru refuses, the reason being that she cannot side with people who do not know what their goals are, let alone understand their teammate's feelings and support him.

The thieves later learn that many people on the Phan-Site are thanking them for their help, despite having no involvement in their submissions, leading them to conclude that Haru and Morgana are the ones resolving them. As such, they wait in Mementos in order to encounter, as well as try and convince Morgana to come back by apologizing. It nearly goes well, until Ryuji makes a thoughtless comment, hurting Morgana once again, causing him to storm off in his car form. They fail to chase him and Haru down, as the two manage to escape.

When they return to reality, the group discovers Haru being harassed by a man, and Morgana injured nearby in an attempt to rescue her. The man introduces himself as her fiancé, and at first, tries to calmly pass the whole thing off as a little quarrel, but becomes angered by their continued interference, threatening them that he will not forget their faces and leaves. Afterward, the group takes Haru to Leblanc to let her rest, at Morgana's request. Seeing their old sense of justice makes Morgana realize he's misunderstood them, and thanks them with a hint of guilt.

Back home, the group discusses the situation with Morgana, who wants to split up with the group as he sees himself as deadweight for them. However, this stems from an identity crisis and losing his sense of self, which Haru understands, and encourages him to admit to himself his true feelings of affection. In the end, Morgana musters the courage to admit to the group, and himself, that he loves staying with them. As his friends respond positively and accept him for who he is, they help him come to terms with his identity crisis for the time being and find purpose in carrying out their goals.

Meanwhile, the thieves learn that Haru, while having the beginnings of a Persona, doesn't have enough power yet to form a contract with it, and her reason for agreeing to become a Phantom Thieves was not to fix her father, but to simply get out of her marriage he forces on her. The group agrees to help her, and returns to Okumura's Palace, and after bypassing the scanner, encounters Okumura's Shadow, as well as his cognition of Haru's fiancé. To their shock and disgust, Okumura was more than aware of his future son-in-law's nature and even stated that he would no doubt only accept Haru as a mere lover, not as his wife, and do whatever he pleased with her. This angers Haru greatly, enough so that her Persona, Milady, finally takes form, and with the help of the party, destroys Cognitive Sugimura.

As they dive deeper into his Palace, they learn what Okumura truly thinks of his workers - mere robots who will work under any condition and will be disposed of and turned into fuel if they break down. This horrifies Haru and resolves her to truly change her father's heart.

After discovering the Treasure, the group sends the calling card, which Haru leaves in her father's study. The next day, when he finds it, he becomes angered and calls the police, claiming that this "band of ruffians have threatened a law-abiding citizen." The group enters Okumura's Palace, but are forced to chase after the Treasure when the facility threatens to self-destruct. Okumura's Shadow's chief endeavor, "Project Utopia," is finally completed, allowing him to leave the Palace in total security if the thieves do not catch up to him.

When they encounter Okumura, he at first seems remorseful and claims that he is happy to see Haru finally standing on her own two feet, though this is a ruse to trick the thieves and capture them. He then tries to persuade Morgana to try and abandon them, having watched their argument earlier by spying on them. Morgana, however, refuses and frees the group. Okumura then sits back and attacks the Thieves with an army of his robots, even sending out his right-hand Execurobo, but at that point runs out of employees to send at them, leaving him open and vulnerable.

After the thieves defeat Okumura, he is now left unsure of what to do, with Haru telling him to atone for what he has done. The group also interrogates him about the recent mental shutdowns and breakdowns, which Shadow Okumura reveals that he is partially responsible for; he had requested that they be targeted, but he does not personally eliminate them, nor does he state who is directly responsible for them. Afterward, the thieves take his Treasure and leave, unaware that a black masked figure murders Shadow Okumura afterward.

On the day Haru was supposed to be sent off to Sugimura, the group celebrates at Tokyo Destinyland, after Haru secured the park for their personal use due to a company party at the location being canceled due to Okumura's fragile mental state. They then watch a live video of Okumura holding a press conference, where he reveals all of his crimes to the media, though before he can also reveal who is behind the mental shutdowns, he suddenly collapses, with black liquid pouring out of his orifices, evidently suffering a mental shutdown. He died shortly afterwards, the symptoms of his mental shutdown being exacerbated due to his advanced age.

Sixth Heist: Sae Niijima
"…It would seem as though you have been killed. But why were you killed? Why did you have to die? Do you remember…? It seems you forgot an important fact while your consciousness was hazy. Indeed… your "death" was a necessity for your escape from certain doom. What a tremendous plan. How might you be capable of executing such a feat…? Well then, let us rouse the memories which are missing…"

—Igor to the protagonist, Persona 5

In the aftermath of Kunikazu Okumura's death, support for the Phantom Thieves plummets, with many believing that they publicly executed Okumura, even so that their past actions were 'nothing but a warm-up.' This horrifies the group, especially with Makoto's revelation that the ones behind the mental shutdowns might have been orchestrating their sudden popularity, only to have them become public enemy number one. Left unable to do anything, for now, the group goes about their daily life, though to their surprise, Goro Akechi, who up until recently was under heavy fire for criticizing the Phantom Thieves by many, states that the Phantom Thieves may, in truth, not be to blame for the mental shutdown cases, and even Okumura's death.

This leads Makoto to suggest getting into contact with Akechi, as he would be a valuable source of intel about police movements. She then invites him to an open panel at the school festival, where he reveals that he has an idea as to who the Phantom Thieves may be. Before he can reveal them, his phone goes off, and he excuses himself. In actuality, this was a ruse to give Akechi time to speak with the group after putting pressure on them. Akechi reveals that he took photographs of the group exiting Okumura's Palace, and even says that he met the true culprit behind the mental shutdowns. Akechi offers his assistance in proving their innocence to the group, though he says that in exchange the Phantom Thieves must disband. After issuing this proposal, Akechi leaves, followed by the rest of the group, with the protagonist and Morgana staying behind.

Back in the present, in the interrogation room, a gap in the protagonist's memory induced by the drug the police injected into him prevents him from recalling what was said between him and Morgana, with no choice but to continue on with his account.

After this meeting, the protagonist spends the remaining time at the school festival with one of his female Confidants, or Ryuji and Mishima. If he chooses the latter, the protagonist will be called on stage to answer questions in front of the school. When asked about the Phantom Thieves, rather than risk saying something he shouldn't, the protagonist decides to publicly confess his love to one of his Confidants, successfully deflecting the subject. After the event concludes, the protagonist and his chosen companion meet on the school roof for some fresh air, and the protagonist receives a special gift from them.

Akechi meets with the group the next day at Cafe Leblanc to discuss further plans. To clear their names, the Phantom Thieves must change Sae Niijima's heart. The group reluctantly agrees to go forward with Akechi's plan, having no further options available to them.

The Phantom Thieves begin a heist on Niijima's Palace, which is a Palace born from Sae's discontent with the jurisdiction system. As Sae views all of her court cases as games to be rigged at all costs, the courthouse that the Palace is based on is distorted into a casino, one rigged with complex mechanisms and outright cheating measures in overwhelming favor of the house. They successfully clear the rigging mechanisms with tremendous help from Akechi, joining the group as a guest, and gain access to the high limit floor, but entry from within the Palace is blocked without a reservation, requiring the thieves to return to reality and change Sae's cognition.

As a result, Akechi brings the group to attend a court case in Sae's presence, making sure she sees them present in the audience, which allows the group access to the high limit floor in her Palace. They manage to get to the highest level, the manager's floor, in spite of Shadow Sae increasing its entry fee by tenfold. After Makoto fakes receiving a letter in the mail containing a calling card to Sae, the heist begins the next day, and the battle with Shadow Sae commences. Despite challenging the Thieves to a rigged roulette, it is quickly exposed by the protagonist and she transforms into Leviathan as a last-ditch attempt to kill them "fair and square," but is ultimately defeated. The thieves successfully talk down Shadow Sae and she finally relents, allowing the party to leave with her Treasure.

However, at the climax of the heist, entire squadrons of real policemen begin swarming into the Palace with the goal of arresting the Thieves, so the protagonist uses himself as bait to lure the resident Shadows away and distract the police so the party can escape. When he exits the Palace, however, he is quickly apprehended by the police. While in custody, he is interrogated by Sae, bringing the sequence of events back to the beginning of the game.

If the protagonist refuses to sell out anyone, the effects of the drug finally wear off, and the protagonist remembers that he knew Akechi was the one who betrayed them, and had already hatched a plan with his friends to expose him and cheat death. He requests Sae to show his smartphone to Akechi, which has been planted with a special remote version of the Metaverse Navigator by Futaba, transporting both Sae and Akechi into the replica of the interrogation room that exists within her Palace, resulting in only the cognitive version of himself being killed by Akechi, who reports it to an inside man who falsifies documents to make the death officially recognized as a suicide without even checking for a body. His plan was reviewed by Igor and the twins shortly after he was "assassinated" by Akechi. Afterward, Sae helps the protagonist escape and escorts him back to Café Leblanc.

Otherwise, if the protagonist sold out either the Phantom Thieves or his other Confidants, Sae promises to reduce his sentence and leaves the room, but without the trick involving the protagonist's phone, Akechi enters and successfully kills him. The protagonist finds himself in the Velvet Room afterward, the residents quite disappointed in him for failing to complete his rehabilitation. Igor tells him that the game is over, and imprisons him in the Velvet Room for the rest of his life.

Seventh Heist: Masayoshi Shido
"To think you would use the trap set against you to entrap them... I've never seen a dramatic resurgence such as that. Truly marvelous—those are the only words I can think of to describe you. ...You've even overcome a mysterious misfortune. There should be no one left to hinder your rehabilitation. Your rehabilitation will be completed shortly. That is... if everything goes well without any problems."

—Igor to the protagonist, Persona 5

Once the protagonist's apparent death is broadcast, and he is smuggled out of the police building with help from Sae, he is brought back to Leblanc. To the outside world, the death of the Phantom Thieves' leader is brushed off as another news piece, and his "suicide" in the interrogation room was also glossed off. With his supposed "death," he is forced to lay low until the Phantom Thieves can identify the person Akechi works for. They find out that Akechi is working for Masayoshi Shido, the same man who caused the founding of the Phantom Thieves in the first place when he looked down on Ryuji and the protagonist at the hotel in May, now a politician who is making massive popularity gains in an audacious bid to seize control of Japan. The protagonist and the group arrive at the Diet Building to try and find the keyword to enter his Palace but turn up nothing until the next morning, where Shido would be hosting an election campaign in Yongen-Jaya. Just like in May, Shido notices the protagonist but fails to recognize him, and leaves after throwing insults against the party. However, he still remembers Shido's voice as being the same as the man who falsely accused him before which resulted in his probation. After recalling what Shido said when he assaulted the woman, the protagonist finds out the Distortion keyword to enter Shido's Palace; "Ship."

Shido's palace takes the appearance of a grand cruiser sailing among the sunken ruins of Tokyo, with the Diet Building itself set atop the massive liner, symbolizing that he cares nothing for the country and only for the wealthy patrons that are useful to him. During the heist, the Phantom Thieves learn more about the Conspiracy and their discreet involvement in orchestrating the thieves' actions starting from Futaba's Palace. Shido's actions were financed by Madarame and Kaneshiro's schemes and he had Wakaba Isshiki killed to steal her research, then ruined Futaba's life with a fabricated suicide note. Once Shido and his associates realized that the Phantom Thieves were a threat to their continued activities, they impersonated Medjed as a means to start a sharp rise in the Phantom Thieves' popularity. Once this succeeded, they manipulated the Phantom Thieves website polls to goad them into taking on Okumura's palace. Finally, Shido had Akechi dispose of Okumura, killing two birds with one stone by getting rid of a problematic associate, as well as causing the Phantom Thieves' popularity to take a sharp nosedive and for them to be targeted by the police.

After collecting all the letters of recommendation to finally enter Shido's treasure room, but before they can leave the area, they are ambushed by Akechi, who had guessed that the protagonist survived his trap. Akechi reveals his past, his relation to Shido and how he was going to use Shido's bid for power to exact revenge. When Shido stands at the height of power after winning the election, Akechi would expose all of his crimes, discrediting Shido thoroughly and completely ruining his life. This makes him not only a traitor for the Phantom Thieves but also for Shido, serving Shido and carrying out the killings to gain recognition and fame, and assist Shido in his rise to power only to topple everything beneath him at the last second.

Knowing that the Phantom Thieves are the only ones who can truly stop him, he attacks the party, revealing that he is another Wild Card user and has the ability to make Shadows go berserk, leading to the psychotic breakdown incidents in the real world. After defeating a Cu Chulainn and a Cerberus he summoned and made berserk, the party puts up a valiant fight against Akechi himself and backs him into a corner. He reveals that he envies the protagonist for his ability to defy expectations put onto him and forge his own path. Driven mad from his anger at the protagonist for having everything he never could, Akechi reveals that he is the mysterious black mask assassin who caused the mental shutdowns, and also reveals another Persona, Loki as a last-ditch attempt to dispose of the protagonist, using his own power on himself and becoming crazed, only wishing to kill the protagonist and all his friends.

Even after revealing his true strength, Akechi is no match for the protagonist and his friends and is defeated. Suddenly, Shido's cognitive version of Akechi arrives on the scene, revealing that Shido was fully aware of Akechi's impending betrayal and was planning to dispose of him immediately after the election. The cognitive version of Akechi threatens the real Akechi to shoot the protagonist, but Akechi instead decides to shoot an emergency switch, causing a large steel bulkhead door to separate him and his cognitive self from the Phantom Thieves. Akechi begs the protagonist to promise to stop Shido in his place, ignoring the group's cries of alarm. Two gunshots are fired and Futaba states that she can no longer sense Akechi, leaving his fate unknown. The Phantom Thieves eventually make it to Shido's Treasure room and prepare to steal his heart.

Rather than send Shido a card which might be intercepted by one of his staff, Futaba suggests hacking the media and announcing to all of Japan of their intent to steal Shido's heart. The protagonist agrees, formally announcing their intentions to steal his heart as well as grandly revealing to the world that he was actually alive all along. In the broadcast, the protagonist and his comrades notify all of Japan that their beloved politician Masayoshi Shido is behind everything, angering him and causing his Treasure to take form.

With the conditions met, the Phantom Thieves infiltrate Shido's Palace and meet his Shadow, who speaks to them about his grand plan to be the next leader of Japan. He even pretends to offer to let the Phantom Thieves join him in his cause in exchange for whatever they desire. Every one of the Phantom Thieves unanimously refuses, and when the protagonist asks if he really means it, he responds that he doesn't. A fight ensues, and Shadow Shido summons a chariot formed by the masses to attack them.

After the chariot is defeated, the protagonist reveals his face to Shadow Shido, causing him to faintly remember the incident that caused the protagonist's probation. This angers Shido and he transforms into a grossly muscular version of himself to fight the Thieves alone. Despite being the toughest Shadow the group has faced, he is eventually brought down. The Phantom Thieves force him to return to his normal self and repent.

In the real world, Shido is suddenly crippled with unease due to the Phantom Thieves' actions in his heart. Having a contingency plan in case the thieves take his heart, he takes a special pill which is supposed to "temporarily kill him," causing his Palace to collapse earlier than the thieves were expecting, catching them off guard. Despite some complications during their escape and a brief scare with the apparent death of Ryuji, the Phantom Thieves all make it out in one piece. Shido's crimes are exposed and he formally admits to them in his commencement speech following Election Day, supplanting doubt and uncertainty within the public.

Despite the Phantom Thieves genuinely believing that things will turn for the better, on December 23, things take a turn for the worst as the public's distortions are increasing at an alarming rate. Abnormal occurrences among the public become blatantly obvious, in the form of Shido's popularity inexplicably increasing, his change of heart being shrugged off as mere mental instability by the mass media, and the Phantom Thieves are being treated as if they never existed. The proxy SIU director also issued a cover-up operation, firing Sae Niijima and hiding Shido from the public, claiming his illness. There are even plans forming to take over the world with the Metaverse, and the Phantom Thieves might face re-arrest almost immediately.

Final Heist: Mementos
"I see... If a god plays naughty, then it's a demon lord's duty to punish him...! What better way is there for a finale as a Trickster! Joker, we're entrusting our strength and the people's hopes to you! Put an end to this!"

—Morgana to the protagonist, Persona 5

The party deduces that Mementos is manipulating the masses into denying their recognition. On the 24th of December, they dive deep into the lowest depths of Mementos, the last Palace which contains nearly the entire Tokyo population's Shadow Selves held in cells. Among the prisoners are all of the Phantom Thieves' former adversaries excluding Okumura. All of the jailed Shadow Selves are blissfully content with their imprisonment, alarming the Phantom Thieves greatly.

Reaching the very bottom of Mementos, the group encounters the apparent Treasure of Mementos, a Holy Grail who claims to be acting on humanity's desires to be enslaved to order and authority, in exchange for the security of not having to think for themselves. The Phantom Thieves attempt to fight it, but the chalice uses the distorted desires of the masses to heal itself and eventually kicks the Phantom Thieves out of Mementos, forcing them back into Shibuya. The Phantom Thieves are unable to do anything but watch as Mementos begins to merge with the real world.

The citizens of Tokyo, save Mishima and Sojiro, as well as any Confidant whom the protagonist reached max rank with, are blissfully unaware of the changes, continuing to go about their lives as normal. The Holy Grail manipulates the masses' cognition into believing that the Phantom Thieves do not exist, and since Mementos and reality are now one and the same, the cognition of the masses is able to affect reality, causing the Phantom Thieves to completely disappear one by one, starting from Futaba and ending with the protagonist. At the same time, the Phan-Site's poll rapidly declines from an already minimal support rate to a firm 0%.

The protagonist reawakens back in the Velvet Room where Igor informs him that the game is over and he has lost. Due to his loss, Igor orders that Caroline and Justine execute the protagonist. The two engage the protagonist in combat but become conflicted as their duties as Velvet Room attendants towards its guests contradict their order to kill him. The floating butterfly tells the protagonist that he needs to fuse Caroline and Justine, and the twin wardens agree as well. After fusing the two of them with the Velvet Room's guillotines, the twins combine into a singular being, a young girl named Lavenza, the true attendant for the protagonist.

"Igor" reveals that he is actually the Holy Grail itself, an almighty being who granted the power of Persona to the protagonist and Akechi as a trial to see if humanity was worthy of being free from his influence. However, he blatantly rigged the outcomes in his favor to show that humanity truly wishes for enslavement. It was also heavily implied that the Grail is behind everything to this point, from the protagonist's confrontation with Shido, to the Phantom Thief bandwagon that resulted in Okumura's death, to the ever-increasing popularity of Shido and the perception that the Phantom Thieves are killers that intensify as the events progress, all in order to prove that he is the only one fit to rule over the ignorant masses. He then offers the protagonist to return the world to its former corrupt state, in exchange for allowing the Phantom Thieves to continue on, and rise to massive success once again. If he refuses, "Igor" deems humanity to be incapable of living on their own accord and promptly leaves, releasing the real Igor, who formally introduces himself to the protagonist at long last.

Additionally, the protagonist can also accept the Grail's offer. If he does, and has double confirmed his decision, Lavenza will be disappointed in his betrayal. The world returns to its original distorted state, and the Phantom Thieves are recognized as national heroes and gain widespread fame. However, the people in the world are incapable of thinking for themselves, and the protagonist becomes a force of terror in Tokyo. As an additional consequence, his teammates may presumably still be trapped eternally inside the Velvet Room and forever exiled from reality.

Despite the Grail's belief that the protagonist has lost, the real Igor gives him enough power to rescue his friends from their respective cells in the Velvet Room and releases them back into reality, tasking the Phantom Thieves to steal the wicked god's heart. He also reveals that Morgana was created by him as a last-ditch effort to guide the protagonist through their journey. When they resurface into the real world, it is revealed that the Quarantine Cell from the Depths of Mementos is actually the Velvet Room, and the "most dangerous inmate" trapped within was heavily implied to be the protagonist himself.

As the Phantom Thieves begin ascending to face the Grail, they are confronted by the four archangels who have also deemed humans unworthy to live without the god's influence, but the Phantom Thieves manage to defeat all of them. Despite these Archangels being mere Shadows, they retain the personalities of their original Shin Megami Tensei counterparts, such as Gabriel sounding merciful before confronting the party. As they defeat the Archangels, more people start to become aware of the merged reality, much to their shock and fear. At the top of the tower, the party faces the Holy Grail once more, where it briefly appears as "Igor" until it transforms back into the Grail.

The protagonist devises a plan for one of his teammates to cut the veins that connect the Holy Grail to the masses, cutting off its ability to heal and allowing the group to finish it off. Despite the fact that the Grail appears to be an inanimate object, it emerges from the temple and reveals the rest of its body. The master of Mementos announces its true identity as Yaldabaoth, the god of control, who appears as an incredibly large mechanical being with four limbs that hold various instruments of justice. He claims that humans are just lemmings in his eyes and rehabilitation is useless, as society will regress to the level of apes. To bring back the future of humanity, the Phantom Thieves enthusiastically make him the final heist target and confront him in one final battle.

Despite the Phantom Thieves seemingly defeating Yaldabaoth, he unleashes his Rays of Control once again, instantly rendering them helpless. However, the tables quickly turn when they hear the voices of the masses, inspired by the cheering of Mishima (or two nondescript Phantom Thieves fans if the protagonist did not max out Mishima's Confidant). Eventually, absolutely everybody believes in their existence and the Phantom Thieves popularity poll instantly makes a comeback, springing from 0% to 100%. The protagonist is able to break the chains that bound himself and Arsène, unlocking his true form as Satanael, a Persona of a colossal size that exceeds even Yaldabaoth, descending from the heavens to deliver true justice.

The protagonist harnesses the will of the people to not be controlled and orders Satanael to fire one last Sinful Shell, shooting Yaldabaoth directly through the head. In his defeat, Yaldabaoth bitterly concedes that humanity is truly worthy of living on their own accord and that Igor's beliefs were indeed the superior ones before reverting back into the lifeless grail and vanishing, removing Mementos from existence and undoing its warping of reality as if it had never happened. Before the Phantom Thieves can celebrate, Morgana begins to disappear with Mementos, as his existence is tied to it, much to the Phantom Thieves' sadness.

With reality restored, the masses seem to have forgotten about the events that had just occurred, however, many of the citizens have begun to openly talk about Shido's poor character. As a light snow begins to fall, the Phantom Thieves realize that it is Christmas Eve and go their separate ways for the night, promising to go to Café Leblanc to celebrate the next day. Sae informs the protagonist that, even though Shido confessed his crimes, it is difficult to prove his guilt since there is little solid evidence and the other world no longer exists.

Because Akechi has disappeared, the only ones who can offer proof are the Phantom Thieves. To properly prosecute Shido, the protagonist's testimony is necessary. Reluctantly, Sae asks the protagonist to turn himself in as the Phantom Thief in order to protect his allies as well and be held accountable for the real life crimes he committed (since no one will believe the incident's supernatural aspects, such as the Metaverse and Yaldabaoth). Doing this also means he will be sent to juvenile detention and will be closely observed. The protagonist agrees to her suggestion to protect his comrades, however, he asks to turn himself in the next day due to plans he has. If he is in a romantic relationship, he can choose to spend his Christmas Eve with his girlfriend. If he is single, he will spend it with Futaba and Sojiro. On Christmas Eve, he worries his girlfriend/Sojiro and Futaba as he cannot bring himself to tell them that he is turning himself in.

The protagonist follows through with his promise to Sae and is promptly placed into a youth detention center for interrogation. He is charged for various crimes as the Phantom Thief for numerous crimes including illegal entry into Madarame's estate and Okumura Foods' office, destroying property and violating the Radio Law when the Phantom Thieves hijacked the airwaves to announce their plan to steal Shido's heart. While imprisoned, he is summoned to the Velvet Room one final time, where Igor and Lavenza bestow upon him the World Arcana; a symbol that he is no longer an existence that wanders alone, and can truly live a free existence wherever he goes. After the Velvet Room and its two attendants disappear, the protagonist watches a blue butterfly fly past him before he awakens to the real world.

While incarcerated, under Ann's suggestion, the rest of the Phantom Thieves and the protagonist's other Confidants all go out and do whatever they can to help appeal for his sentence to be lifted. The people of Tokyo are willing to support the protagonist for him to get out of detention. Due to their efforts, the woman who originally testified against the protagonist is found and she openly testifies to the protagonist's innocence in the original sentence, absolving him of his probation. Sae, who spearheaded the case against Shido, informs him of her efforts in clearing his name alongside his Confidants and thanks to him for exposing the corruption of government and finalizes his release on February 13th.

He is then picked up by Sojiro and taken to the café where everyone, with the exception of Morgana, welcomes him back. While talking about Morgana, Ryuji asks the protagonist if he is going back to his hometown since the probation charges have been dropped, which the protagonist confirms. The party then decides that if their leader goes back, the Phantom Thieves will officially be disbanded. Morgana appears shortly after as a mere house cat, revealing that the one that disappeared is his Metaverse self while his real-world self still exists due to him being forever in the hearts of the Thieves. Morgana then decides he will stick with the protagonist to look for a way to become a human.

The next day, on Valentine's Day, the protagonist can spend it with his girlfriend at Café Leblanc if he is in a relationship and will receive gourmet chocolate as a present. If he is single, Ryuji visits Café Leblanc and the two spend it together in commiseration, with Ryuji giving him cheap chocolate he received at a store. Humorously, if the protagonist is in a relationship with more than one woman, after his date, he will be confronted by all of his other girlfriends the next day, where they promptly beat him up and take their chocolate gifts with them, although he gets to keep his original date's chocolate if she was the only person asked to meet him, as she isn't present during the beat down. Sojiro does damage control for him and convinces the other women to take him back, and gives him chocolate out of pity.

A month later, the protagonist's probation period ends and he prepares to go home. The day before his departure, he says his final goodbyes to his fellow Phantom Thieves and Confidants with each one giving the protagonist a farewell gift if their Confidant relationship is at its strongest. On the final day, the protagonist may hand Sojiro his probation journal, as was the rule. At Shibuya crossing, he runs into the other Phantom Thieves who have acquired a van and plan on taking the protagonist home themselves. Despite being free of his criminal record, two men in suits attempt to trail the now-disbanded Phantom Thieves only to find their car stalled out due to Morgana swiping their car's spark plugs. These are heavily implied to be Policemen attempting to capture the Phantom Thieves to save their public image, as shown during Persona 5 Strikers where the Police are still tailing the instigators of last year's events. As they near the protagonist's hometown, the protagonist pops his head through the sunroof and smiles in satisfaction.

Personality
As per tradition of the Megami Tensei franchise, he is a silent protagonist, whose personality is based on the player's actions and decisions. However, he appears to have more established traits than any of the previous protagonists. His dialogue options range from somewhat indifferent to outright cheeky. The game allows for quite a number of playful, snarky or audacious answers, including teasing his friends. He also taunts his enemies like the famed Arsène Lupin. In the prologue scene, he remains cocky and confident even when his life is in danger. He also has a flair for showing off and making dramatic decisions, such as exiting by jumping through the stained-glass windows of the Casino, much to the amazement (and mild annoyance) of the other Phantom Thieves. This is even reflected in gameplay, as when he is turned into a mouse, he makes a flamboyant hop after escaping a battle.

Powers and Abilities
Ren is a Persona User, meaning he is able to draw on the powers of his inner self to summon Demons that represent inner parts of his soul. A unique property that Makoto has is the power of the Wild Card, meaning that he is not restricted to using only one Persona based on their Arcana. Ren is in turn, able to switch Personas at will.

Arsène
The protagonist obtains Arsène, his initial Persona, during his first confrontation with Shadow Kamoshida in Kamoshida's Palace, where Arsène personally teaches the protagonist how to fight during his first battle. Upon being fused for the first time, he bids the protagonist farewell, but states that he will appear again at an important period in his journey. This occurs at the beginning of Niijima's Palace, facing off against Moloch. At the climax of the game during the battle against Yaldabaoth, Arsène appears once more. The cheers of the public fuel the protagonist to finally unbind the chains around Arsène, causing him to transform into his ultimate Persona, Satanael.

Satanael
Satanael is the ultimate Persona of both the Fool Arcana and the protagonist. He is summoned by breaking the chains sealing him as Arsène during the final battle, where the cheers of millions of Tokyo citizens heal and protect the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. His ultimate attack that finishes off Yaldabaoth in one blow is the Sinful Shell, an attack that combines the power of the Seven Deadly Sins into one in order to kill a god.

Appearances

 * Persona 5
 * Persona 5 Royal
 * Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight
 * Persona 5 Strikers
 * Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth
 * Night of the Phantom

Trivia

 * He is the first protagonist in the Persona series to be a criminal.
 * If one includes the rest of the playable characters, Baofu is the first criminal for conducting telephone tapping.
 * The protagonist's mugshot reads "P508954TS."
 * Unlike other protagonists in the franchise, he is the first protagonist shown speaking in several in-game cutscenes. Likewise, most of the in-game narration is his internal monologue, instead of the second person narrator used in the previous games. Despite this, however, when he's with Morgana, he gives an indirect narration to his thoughts.
 * The protagonist could be found within the internal files of Persona 4 Arena Ultimax as a scrapped fighter with his old Persona Mephistopheles.
 * At the Sega Festival 2016, the protagonist won second place in a fan poll of "favorite party member," only beaten by Goro Akechi.
 * He is the third character in the Persona series to be named "Joker;" the first two being Jun Kurosu and Tatsuya Sudou from the Persona 2 duology, the fourth if the JOKER Persona counts as well.
 * Joker is the first Persona protagonist to get a tier 3 ultimate Persona, albeit only as DLC.
 * The protagonist is, according to Sojiro, a "country boy," meaning his hometown isn't a city.
 * When the group travels back home in Persona 5 's true ending, they take the only highway running along the coast in the suburbs of Tokyo, Tōmei Expressway (東名高速道路, Tōmeikōsokudōro)?. They are traveling west from Tokyo, through Kanbara.
 * If the protagonist defeats an enemy, in his victory animation, sometimes he will have a wider grin than he usually has.