Yusuke Kitagawa

Yusuke Kitagawa is a playable character from Persona 5. He is an art student from Kosei High School who becomes involved with the Phantom Thieves of Hearts.

Appearances

 * Persona 5: Playable Character; Emperor Confidant
 * Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers: Major Character

Design
Yusuke has dark blue hair with parted bangs slightly covering his left eye and gray eyes. His in-game character model is slightly taller and noticeably thinner than other male characters'.

He wears his school's uniform within regulation. The winter-variant consists of a white long-sleeved dress shirt with a mandarin collar embroidered with his school emblem (a ), tight-fitting black pants, and black loafers. A silver key ring with multiples keys is attached to his belt loop. The summer-variant replaces the long-sleeved shirt with an ultramarine-colored button-down, which Yusuke wears with the sleeves pushed up to the elbows.

His thief outfit consists of a traditional kitsune-style half mask, a black jumpsuit with a striped sash worn across his hips, white motorcycle boots, blue gloves, and a white fox tail decorated with red ribbon attached slightly off-center to his sash.

Personality
At first glance, Yusuke is a very composed and collected individual, and upon further inspection, this extends to a sense of methodical intelligence and a highly observant nature. Yusuke acts with poise and elegance, displayed by his eloquent, poetic way of speaking. He is able to remain calm even in dire circumstances, but can also act dramatically at times; others have pointed him out as weird, and even Yusuke admits that he can be seen as eccentric.

He acts politely in general when dealing with others, though it is more sincere when dealing with females, specifically Ann, while he displays a more cold and haughty behavior towards males such as Ryuji and the protagonist. In addition, his focus on art leads him to isolate himself from others, whether unintentional or purposefully. Still, Yusuke does care for others, as he looks out for his teammates and worries about his classmate Naoya's behavior, suspecting family problems are the cause. Yusuke also claims he donates blood.

Yusuke’s entire life’s passion is comprised of and surrounded by art: he searches for the aesthetic everywhere in his surroundings, from people to places. He sees every opportunity or challenge presented to him as a way to broaden his horizons and primarily considers how it will benefit him as an artist. He is captivated by the painting “Sayuri,” and seeks to capture the sense of beauty that it portrays. This passion extends to his mentor Madarame, who he believed created the painting and took him in when he was young. As such, Yusuke greatly admires and respects him to the point that he vehemently denies any of the rumors surrounding Madarame even when he knows it is true and finds actual proof supporting it.

Having been sheltered for most of his life, Yusuke acts with pure intentions, but ultimately is unaccustomed to the ways of the society he lives in and the naïveté born from it shows more times than not, in particular being unaware when he is coming off as creepy and intrusive until directly told. Some examples include the times he causes trouble for other team members, such as being energetically pushy when asking for Ann to be his art model and landing on her back when entering or exiting a Palace, as well as remodeling Futaba's Phoenix Ranger Featherman R figurines without her permission. A running gag in the game is how Yusuke spends all his money on things that capture his attention without any foresight, such as on art books or lobsters at the beach because they are aesthetically pleasing.

Over time, Yusuke’s disconnection from reality and his blunt introduction to his mentor’s vain and evil nature becomes a source of internal struggle to him. He wishes to paint purely for the sake of passion and capture the essence of the human heart, but detests that it becomes for the sake of gaining money, shelter, and recognition. He realizes that the beauty he seeks to attain in his own paintings is superficial without any meaning. The protagonist eventually helps him understand his calling on a deeper level and convey his feelings on canvas properly.

Yusuke seems to be knowledgeable of and admires other artists as well, such as when he desires "Da Vinci" to be his Phantom Thief code name. In his Confidant, he compares the protagonist to, the brother of , who was his greatest supporter.

Persona 5
Yusuke is an honor student in an art course at the Kosei High School. Orphaned at a young age, he was found to have artistic talents and he is currently a live-in disciple of a famous Japanese painter by the name of Ichiryusai Madarame.

Yusuke approaches Ann Takamaki before being misunderstood as a stalker by the protagonist and Ryuji Sakamoto. He asks Ann to become a model for his next art, inviting her to go to his master's art exhibition to consider his offer. Hearing Madarame is a fraud, the Phantom Thieves decides to accept Yusuke's offer so they can investigate Madarame. They directly ask Yusuke about this, which angers Yusuke who continuously defends his master. After hearing about Madarame's doings from his former disciple, Natsuhiko Nakanohara, and locating his Palace, Ann and Morgana try to find the proof of Madarame's deception by once again accepting Yusuke's offer to become his model, while the protagonist and Ryuji enters Madarame's Palace (although Ann does everything in her power to delay actually becoming a nude model, even dressing in so many layers that Yusuke briefly believes she has gained weight). Ann sweet-talks Yusuke into letting her enter Madarame's studio where they found the evidence of Madarame's deception. When Madarame threatened to call the police, Ann and Morgana runs away, and Yusuke follows them as well, leading him to enter Madarame's Palace. Even after seeing the proof earlier, Yusuke still wants to believe in his master, so he decides to follow the Thieves to find out the truth.

Meeting Shadow Madarame, his master's Shadow reveals that to him, Yusuke is an art slave. He admits that he has indeed been stealing his students' artwork and declares it as his own. Once Yusuke learns of this truth, his desperation to find any decent goodness in his mentor turns into that of complete and utter desire for Madarame's retribution. Yusuke awakens his Persona, Goemon. Retreating to the real world, Yusuke asks to be allowed to join the Phantom Thieves, which is permitted by Morgana.

Confronting Shadow Madarame along with the Phantom Thieves for the last time, Shadow Madarame reveals his real treasure, the original Sayuri that Yusuke's mother had painted. From this, Yusuke deduces that his mother's death is not a simple accident. Shadow Madarame confirms this, revealing that when Yusuke was a little boy, all other disciples of Madarame began to distance themselves away from him after learning of his true nature, leaving only Yusuke's single mother. Around the time Yusuke was born, his mother created an art piece of herself happily holding her newborn son in her arms. When Madarame came across this beautifully constructed work of art, he made a deal with her in which he'd agreed to let Yusuke become a new member of the family in exchange of holding on to the artwork. One tragic day, Madarame witnessed her having a seizure in front of him, and instead of easily offering medical support, he let her die in vain and made duplicates of her last piece dedicated to her son to sell to the public, which granted him the fame and credit he has today. In order to give it "mystery," Madarame altered the art by removing the baby from the picture completely. Since he was just 3 years old, Yusuke receives no credit or recognition for his brilliant work; Madarame uses them to take the credit for his own, just like he did to Yusuke's mother, Natsuhiko and his other disciples many years ago.

Now knowing the whole truth, Yusuke thanks his former mentor because now he no longer has any reason to forgive him. Eventually defeating him and stealing his heart, Yusuke retrieves the original Sayuri painting that his mother had painted for him. Yusuke deduces that "Sayuri" is just a made up title by Madarame for the painting and unlikely to be his mother's true name because of fear of exposing the scam. After the exhibition, Madarame confesses to his crimes and is swiftly punished and discredited for it. Yusuke sadly recalls the "happy family" he lived in when Madarame's other disciples were around and how as he grew older, he never lost the hope that they would come back and they all could be happy once again. Now that he is part of the Phantom Thieves, he feels like he has another "happy family" again. Wanting to let go of the past, Yusuke gives the Sayuri painting to the protagonist who then displays it at Cafe Leblanc.

If the protagonist does not complete the dungeon in time, on the day Madarame completes his exhibition, he will report Ann and the Phantom Thieves to the police for trespassing into Madarame's home and keep Yusuke as an apprentice against his will. This scenario is a false recollection made by the protagonist during Sae's interrogation, due to his mind being addled by drugs he was forcefully administered by the police. Sae proceeds to leave the room to give the protagonist time to recover, at which point Akechi takes the opportunity to assassinate him.

Confidant
Yusuke's Confidant can be started on June 18th, after completing Madarame's Palace. It revolves around the fallout of his relationship with Madarame and his struggle to continue painting. Unlocking this Confidant allows Yusuke to replicate a Skill Card using Blank Cards which can be obtained in the Palace, being able to copy higher end Skill Cards as the Rank increases. Maxing this Confidant makes Goemon evolve into Kamu Susano-o and unlocks the fusion of Odin.

Yusuke approaches the protagonist admitting that he has been caught in a deep slump like his former mentor ever since discovering Madarame's true nature. He goes with the protagonist to Mementos in order to find inspiration on a new piece to capture the contents of the heart. Shadows attack them while there but are quickly defeated, and when one drops a Blank Card, Yusuke uses it to create a real Skill Card, an ability he offers to the protagonist in exchange for helping him with his art.

Using the concept sketch he made in Mementos, Yusuke creates "Desire," a painting he eagerly decides to submit to an upcoming art exhibition believing it will be acclaimed as a raw look into the human psyche. To his disappointment however, it is universally panned by both critics and patrons for being emotionless and stale. Upon inspection, Yusuke realizes the painting only conveys his own blank interpretation of desire and considers giving up, but the protagonist convinces him to try again and prove his ability.

Yusuke takes the protagonist to various places to observe people and paint in order to reenergize his creative spirit and tackle various aspects of the human heart as themes, only to find different aspects beyond his focus. Their trips eventually take them back to Madarame's shack, where Yusuke reminisces about his pure passion for art, his pursuit of superficial beauty, and his blind acceptance of Madarame's facade as a strict but kind mentor. Yusuke reveals his fears that he too might be succumbing to the dark desires that corrupted Madarame and despite discovering his dark secrets, Yusuke still partly acknowledges Madarame as his teacher and father figure, and questions what lies in both Madarame's and his own heart. He then meets Akiko Kawanabe, the director of the Japanese Art Support Foundation who he unknowingly met back at the exhibition. Yusuke admits he believes his pure passion for art has been lost because of Madarame, and Kawanabe offers him a spot in his foundation in exchange for being marketed as a tragic brooding artist and selling his paintings through his gallery. Yusuke angrily rejects saying the offer has nothing to do with art, but Kawanabe only notes his immaturity and instead goads him to enter an upcoming competition with the Foundation's support as the prize. Yusuke decides to enter to prove his ability and show the true meaning of art to Kawanabe and all others who only care for wealth.

Yusuke asks for help from the protagonist, Ryuji, and Ann on deciding a subject for his peace, only to quickly lament that his paintings could never match the beauty of "Sayuri" because he is overcome by needs for money and fame. The others help him realize that there is nothing wrong with doing things for himself, but his art needs to be made for the sake of others if he wants to succeed. Yusuke comes to understand the beauty he sought on a much deeper level and, during another trip to Mementos with the protagonist, the meaning behind the "Sayuri" and its impact on him.

He is inspired to paint again and recreates the "Desire" piece as "Desire and Hope," to reflect the duality of humanity and bring hope to people lost to their inner darkness. The painting wins the competition and is given praise from Kawanabe, who reveals his taunting Yusuke was only an act of aid from another former victim of Madarame to spark his inner drive. Kawanabe reveals he and Madarame were classmates and that despite his vanity and evil actions Madarame too was once pure and had traits of merit, caring for Yusuke when he was ill. When he offers the support of his foundation, Yusuke again declines, saying that his friends and the bonds between them, the inspiration for his piece, are his hope and with them he will never go down the same dark path Madarame did. With newfound resolve, Yusuke finally breaks his slump and becomes eager to start his next piece.

Yusuke's farewell gift to the protagonist after maxing his Confidant is the Desire and Hope painting he made during the Confidant. It unlocks the Master Duplication ability from the start of New Game+ once their Confidant has been established.

Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers
Yusuke is first seen walking with Naoya Makigami and alerts the Phantom Thieves of Hearts to Naoya's post on the Phantom Aficionado Website. He convinces them that they need to stop Kazuya's gang with a more permanent solution than just reporting them to the police. Yusuke is the one to confirm that Naoya is being abused, as he notices bruises on Naoya's back and arms while they are changing clothes. He assists in fighting Kazuya's demon form, Mithras, dispatching his Onmoraki servant with Goemon's ice powers. After Kazuya's arrest, he and the other Phantom Thieves of Hearts prepare for their next heist, with Yusuke commenting that their "next prey is huge."

Battle Quotes
Quotes video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZPQWlQ-A6E
 * "This is my other self!" (Summoning Persona)
 * "I am thou!" (Summoning Persona)
 * "Let's go!" (Summoning Persona)
 * "Persona!" (Summoning Persona)
 * "Goemon!" (Goemon casting skill)
 * "Goemon, strike!" (Goemon casting skill)
 * "Take this!" (Goemon casting skill)
 * "I'll use my own judgment." (Tactics changed to Act Freely)
 * "I will beat them soundly." (Tactics changed to Full Assault)
 * "I won't use my Persona." (Tactics changed to Conserve SP)
 * "Focusing on defense." (Tactics changed to Heal/Support)
 * "Give me your orders." (Tactics changed to Direct Command)

Trivia

 * Yusuke's last name and the design of his Persona Goemon are references to (喜多川 歌麿), one of the most highly regarded practitioners of the  genre of woodblock prints, especially for his portraits of beautiful women, or bijin-ga. As an adult, he was known by the given name Yūsuke (勇助).
 * Futaba would often refer to Yusuke as Inari. Although the name itself comes from, the Japanese god of foxes, Futaba herself cites the , a fried sushi dish that foxes had a fondness for according to Japanese folklore, as the origin of the nickname.
 * Yusuke often glitches when using the "Harisen Recovery" skill; leading to him hitting his teammates with his hand rather than a paper fan. This bug was patched.
 * Being an artist in game, Yusuke's Confidant ability to "paint" a Skill Card on a Blank Card is reminiscent of the Tarot Card replication service in Persona 2 provided by Demon Painter, who is Kazuma Kaneko's in-game cameo. There is also the Skill Card replication service in Persona 2: Eternal Punishment but that requires sacrificing one for registration to make that card purchasable infinitely for a relatively high price depending on the rank of each card.
 * After Yukiko Amagi, Yusuke is the second party member in the series regularly speaks "I am thou" when summoning Persona.
 * Yusuke is the tallest member of the Phantom Thieves, standing at 181 cm.
 * Yusuke's appearance is very similar to Jun Kurosu from Persona 2. They even share the same zodiac sign, Aquarius.
 * Yusuke can dress as Jonny from Catherine.
 * When Yusuke fiddled with Futaba's Phoenix Rangers Neo Featherman figures, the poses of the figures are reminiscent to the from the  series.
 * Yusuke doesn't like his mask that much.