Protagonist (Persona 5)

The protagonist of Persona 5 is a transfer student at Shujin Academy. In the beginning of the game, he has little to no power or influence in the world, and is restrained by the rules of the system he was born into.

However, beneath his quiet demeanor is a strong-willed juvenile delinquent known throughout the world as The Phantom, to the residents of the Velvet Room he is known as the Trickster, and to his teammates his code name is Joker. The protagonist is the leader of the rebellious Phantom Thieves of Hearts which aims to change society by touching the hearts of people and performing illegal heists.

Appearances

 * Persona 5: Protagonist
 * Persona 5 (Manga): Protagonist as Akira Kurusu
 * Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers: Protagonist
 * Night of the Phantom: Protagonist as The Phantom

Design
The protagonist has wavy black hair and dark gray eyes. His default outfit is his school uniform, which consists a buttoned up black blazer with red buttons and the school's emblem on the pocket, a white turtleneck shirt that has two black chevrons on the collar, and black and red plaid trousers. He also wears black glasses; it is unknown if he needs them for vision correction as he does not wear them in the ending nor does he wear them in his first encounter with Masayoshi Shido.

As Joker, his outfit consists of a black trench coat with a gray collared shirt, black trousers, brown cuban heeled boots, and a pair of red gloves. His mask is a white bird-shaped mask with a black design around the eyes.

During visits to the Velvet Room, he wears a black and white prisoner uniform.

Personality
As per the tradition of the Megami Tensei franchise, he is a silent protagonist, whose personality is based upon 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 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.



Munehisa Iwai says if everyone in the world held the same code of honor as the protagonist, guns would be obsolete. Sadayo Kawakami notes that, by opposing Suguru Kamoshida, he has a strong sense of justice despite his bad reputation. Shinya Oda states that he made him realize "To be cool, you have to live life in your own way." and that's the type of person he's striving to become. Hifumi Togo notes, while playing Shogi with him, that she senses he has a "gambler's spirit." Sojiro Sakura says the protagonist has an assertive nature, to which the rest of the thieves agree. Ryuji Sakamoto say during the climax of the Niijima Palace heist, despite being quiet, once he has made up his mind, he won't take no for an answer. Goro Akechi says although the protagonist is quiet, he possesses the courage and determination to take action, and has a free heart, despite his social standing and how others view him, and that he never stops choosing his own path.

His profile states that he appears quiet and well-mannered, but this behavior is a profound ruse that hides the heart of a rebellious trickster. He is extremely resistant to rigid and dogmatic forms of control-based authority and order. He has received much criticism, insults, opposition and even death threats for his rebellious nature, whether it be his targets, school staff, disapproving comments left on the Phantom Aficionado Website, etc. Suguru Kamoshida calls him a "defiant piece of garbage." However, despite all this, the Phantom Thieves have also received a good deal of support.

In Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers, he can easily be perceived as an unassuming student during his daily life. He appears somewhat introverted and absent-minded, perhaps as part of his "profound ruse" or in being mentally preoccupied with the Phantom Thieves' activities, as he was shown not paying attention in class. In truth, he is highly resourceful and plans ahead, such as using Cafe Leblanc as bait to obtain evidence behind Kazuya Makigami's crimes, as well as obtaining the false alarm system from Iwai. He also has a reckless side, as seen when Ryuji and Ann question his audacious decision to use Leblanc as bait despite numerous dangers, including the risk of Sojiro finding out. In response, the protagonist simply says he'll cross that bridge when he comes to it. Like the other Phantom Thieves, he fully believes in their mission to reform their targets, even taking pride in his work as he declares to Kazuya that he has stolen the arrogance in his heart.

In the process of designing characters for Persona 5, Shigenori Soejima imagined the protagonist as the type who plans things but does not talk about them. Jun Fukuyama, his voice actor, described the protagonist as the the type of person you cannot get to know easily. However, he also says the protagonist has the characteristics of a leader and that the other members of the Phantom Thieves trust him deeply.

Unlike previous Persona protagonists, the catalyst for his Persona awakening is specific (his desire to help people in need). Arsene notes this, and wonders if the resolve the protagonist showed in the past was valid or not. This in turn proves instrumental to Awakening, as it is the basis for his rebellious will, allowing him to form a contract with Arsene and summon him.

Persona 5
The protagonist is a second year high school student who meets Morgana and transfers to Shujin Academy in the spring in Tokyo near Aoyama-Itchome. He lives in a coffee shop called Cafe Leblanc, located in Yongen-Jaya and owned by Sojiro Sakura, an acquaintance of his parents. He becomes classmates with Ryuji Sakamoto and Ann Takamaki, who join him in his endeavors alongside the mysterious Morgana. Additionally, he is the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, a group whose purpose is to steal the hearts of corrupted adults in order to create a reformed society. Later, more members join the Phantom Thieves: Yusuke Kitagawa, Makoto Niijima, Futaba Sakura, Haru Okumura, and Goro Akechi.

Prologue
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 force in order to allow his companions to escape. He makes quick work of a demon before he continues his escape, though shortly after jumping out of a window, he is cornered by the police and is subsequently captured, informed that he was "sold out" by someone. Later, he is found in an interrogation room, bound to a chair, having been seemingly drugged by his captors. The apparent leading investigator splashes him with water in order to wake up him, 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 killing people. Afterwards, 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.

Shortly after signing his name, Sae Niijima, a prosecutor leading his case, enters the room to interrogate him. 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, only for the man to sue him and press charges. It is later revealed that the man was Masayoshi Shido, a powerful politician with strong connections to the police department. As a result of his intervention, and the man's injuries, the incident went down on his permanent record, and the protagonist was subsequently expelled. At the court hearing, he was told to transfer schools, and move away, a condition his parents agreed to, thus leaving him in the care of Sojiro Sakura.

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. Afterwards, as time resumes, the protagonist seemingly deletes the application, and makes his way to the Yongen-Jaya Station, and later to the alleyway, where his new caretaker resides. He arrives to find Sojiro Sakura speaking with customers. Sojiro is surprised that the "punk kid" he was asked to look after is the protagonist, implying that he once met the protagonist in the past. Sojiro shows him his new room, though despite it's 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 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 afterwards. Later, he awakens in the Velvet Room, and finds himself in prison garbs, even bound in handcuffs with a ball and chain on his leg. Igor greets 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 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 it's form represents the state of the guest's heart. Igor also refers to the protagonist as a "Prisoner of Fate," and that destruction awaits him in the future.

Igor informs him that there is a way to avoid that destruction, 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
On his way to school the next day, the protagonist once again open the mysterious app in his phone and then sees Ann being offered a ride to school by a teacher, Suguru Kamoshida. As he sees them go to school, Ryuji arrives and calls Kamoshida a perverted teacher. The protagonist gets acquainted with Ryuji and inquired what he meant, which resulted his inquiry is responded by the app, opening the path to another world: Kamoshida's Palace. He and Ryuji encounter Shadow Kamoshida who is about to kill Ryuji while the protagonist is restrained. The protagonist hears a voice that questions if he is just going to keep quiet and reminds him of the incident that led to his probation. As the protagonist remembers the incident, he comes to the conclusion that he didn't make the wrong choice to save the woman. In response to his determination, he then awakens his Persona power, summoning Arsene. While escaping, they also encounter a cat-like creature, Morgana, who got captured and asks to be freed and in exchange he will show the way out for them.

Once both he and Ryuji are out, they confront Kamoshida about this, but the teacher has no idea what they are talking about. This causes Kamoshida to force the protagonist's classmate, Yuuki Mishima, to spread bad rumors about the protagonist to the whole school. After visiting the world the second time and heard everything from Morgana, the protagonist and Ryuji decide to expose Kamoshida's true nature. The protagonist asks Ann about this, and she confirms that Kamoshida is trying to make a move on her. Since no other students are willing to talk, Morgana proposes to make Kamoshida admit his sin by stealing his Treasure in his Palace, which represents his arrogance. However, when Morgana warns them that if they kill Shadow Kamoshida the real Kamoshida will also die as well, the protagonist and Ryuji request Morgana to give them some time to think.

The protagonist and Ryuji finally decide to accept Morgana's suggestion after witnessing Ann's friend, Shiho Suzui, attempted suicide after being molested by Kamoshida. The three of them are then joined by Ann who wants to avenge Shiho. To make Shadow Kamoshida confront them himself, Ryuji pins a calling card on the school board to Kamoshida under the name "Phantom Thieves of Heart", enraging Shadow Kamoshida in the Palace. They succeed in stealing Kamoshida's treasure, and the next day just like Morgana has said, Kamoshida abruptly confesses all of his crimes in front of the whole students. Thanks to this, the bad rumors about the protagonist and Ann stopped and his and Ryuji's expulsion get dropped.

They decide to celebrate their success at an expensive restaurant by using the money from selling Kamoshida's treasure. 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. Their encounter with Shido convinces the protagonist, Ryuji, and Ann to continue their work as Phantom Thieves to steal corrupt hearts of adults and reform society so there will be no victims like them.

Second Heist: Ichiryusai Madarame
Mishima, who knows of the protagonist's identity as one of the Phantom Thieves, created a website that also serves as request board for the Phantom Thieves of Hearts to take on missions. However, since not many people believing their existence, the Phantom Thieves decide to change another corrupt famous adult to make their name known. They get this opportunity when an art student and disciple of famous Japanese painter Ichiryusai Madarame, Yusuke Kitagawa, asks Ann to become his model for his next work. A former apprentice of Madarame, Natsuhiko Nakanohara, tells them that Madarame actually steals his students' painting, one of them even committed suicide after his was stolen. So Natsuhiko asks them to stop Madarame before he can steal Yusuke's painting.

Yusuke's trust for his teacher makes the protagonist and the others has difficulty in finding information to enter his Palace until Ann found the proof of Madarame's doing in his studio and shows it to Yusuke. When escaping from Madarame and enters the Palace, Yusuke gets dragged as well and he awakens his Persona power after saw his teacher's true nature. To reform his teacher, Yusuke joins the Phantom Thieves as well. After defeating Shadow Madarame and steals his treasure, they finds out that there's a third party besides them inside the Palace, but Madarame only reveals the person to be a person with black mask. Yusuke then gives Madarame's treasure, the real "Sayuri" painting that his mother painted before her death, to the protagonist and it's then displayed at Cafe Leblanc.

Third Heist: Junya Kaneshiro
Following Madarame's confession at live television, the Phantom Thieves' activities becomes known and attracts many people, particularly high school detective Goro Akechi and student council president Makoto Niijima. During a study trip, the protagonist meets Goro who reveals his disdain towards the Phantom Thieves' actions. Despite this, the protagonist gets well acquainted with Akechi. The principal of Shujin Academy also got worried so he asks Makoto to investigate the possibilities the Phantom Thieves are among the students of their school. Makoto quickly gets suspicious of the protagonist and his friends, secretly following them and finally gets the proof in a form of 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, and if they can prove they are right, she won't reveal her recording. She gives them a target of a man who has a connection with the yakuza and is extorting some of their school mates. Without any choice, the Phantom Thieves accepts her request.

They eventually tracks down the extorter, Junya Kaneshiro, and enters his Palace, but can't find his treasure since they don't know his whereabouts in real life. Makoto helps them locating the real Kaneshiro, but Makoto's reckless way leads Kaneshiro to takes picture of them in his club and threatens to leak it to the media unless they pay him. To stop Kaneshiro from leaking the photos, the Phantom Thieves invites Makoto to the Palace where she awakens her Persona power and joins them. At the end of their fight against Shadow Kaneshiro, he reveals there's a third party that manipulates the Palace and Mementos for their own ends without caring for the consequences. With Kaneshiro's heart stolen, he deletes the photos and turn himself in, assuring the protagonist and the others there won't be any photo leak.

Fourth Heist: Futaba Sakura
Their success in changing Kaneshiro's heart earns them the attention of a hacker group called Medjed who demands the Phantom Thieves to cease their false justice by joining them. Following Medjed's offer, the protagonist receives an unknown chat from a mysterious hacker called Alibaba who requests him to steal a certain someone's heart in exchange they will take care of Medjed. Should the protagonist refuse, they will leak his identity to the media. The protagonist and the others thinks 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 too lacking, the protagonist tries to ask Sojiro, but he refuses to tell him anything and threatens to kick him out if he ask more. The protagonist tries to ask Alibaba for more detail and asks to meet them, but his request leads Alibaba to abruptly cancel their request.

The Phantom Thieves thinks that the problem has been solved with Alibaba not bothering them again, until they heard from Akechi that Medjed has declared an all out war against them, so they have no choice but to once again track down Alibaba. Makoto correctly deduces that Alibaba is actually Futaba herself, which is confirmed when Sojiro finally explains about Futaba after the protagonist and the others caught a glimpse of her when visiting Sojiro's house. They confront Futaba and asks to make a deal with her again, which she agrees.

After obtaining the key words necessary to enter her Palace, the phantom thieves enters her Palace, which is a giant pyramid. At first, they are not seen as threats since they have not adopted their Metaverse attire, but after meeting with Shadow Futaba, their clothes appear, and are forced to run from a boulder threatening to crush them. As they progress through the Palace, the party finds several murals, each depicting Futaba in some situation or another. The first is 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. Their path to the treasure, however, is blocked by a blockade, signifying Futaba's unwillingness to allow anyone in her room. The group returns to reality, hoping to find a way to let Futaba allow them in, in order to destroy the blockade. 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. After leaving behind a calling card for Futaba, in order to have her treasure manifest, they 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 woman who hates and loathes her for killing her, and tries to murder her. After Futaba enters her own Palace with the Metaverse Navigator, she manages to overcome her own feelings of self-loathing, and awakens to her Persona. They successfully manage to defeat the cognition, though to their confusion, the Treasure is not inside the coffin. As the Palace begins to crumble after Futaba leaves, Morgana explains that Futaba herself was the Treasure, and with her being inside her own Palace for so long, it has become unstable.

The group successfully leaves, albeit landing in front of Sojiro's store. As the others distract Sojiro, Makoto and the protagonist look after Futaba, who is unconscious. Fearing the worst, the protagonist calls Tae Takemi, a doctor in Yongen-Jaya. After a brief examination, Tae states that Futaba has unnaturally low stamina and strength, most likely due to her shut-in nature. Though the group is worried for her well-being, Sojiro explains that this is normal for Futaba, and can sleep for days on end due to how much she exerts herself. On the day Medjed is supposed to destroy Japan's economy and begin a 'cleansing' of Phantom Thief supporters, Futaba hacks into their website, leaving behind the signature logo of the Phantom Thieves. Afterwards, Futaba, in accordance to her hacking skills, is asked to join, who agrees, if only to find the one responsible for murdering her mother and stealing her research.

Fifth Heist: Kunikazu Okumura
With the defeat of Medjed, the Phantom Thieves receive overwhelming popularity, and is even well-known overseas. Though the Phantom Thieves have recruited Futaba, she is still nervous around large groups of people, thus the group resolves to spend individual days with her in order to help her overcome her shyness. They eventually manage to convince her to come to the beach with them. After school begins again, the group embarks on a school trip to Hawaii, where they learn about the Phantom Thieves' increasing popularity. Unfortunately, unknown to them, Principal Kobayakawa of Shujin Academy suddenly commits suicide, dying of unknown causes, though some believe that he was murdered by the Phantom Thieves for covering up Kamoshida's crimes. They have little time to dwell on the matter, however, as many on the Phan-Site have requested various individuals of who should be targeted next, as part of the poll Mishima set up. Their newest target is Kunikazu Okumura, the wealthy CEO of Okumura Foods, which sponsors the famous Big Bang Burger restaurant. Suspiciously, much of Big Bang's competition has fallen out, either due to mental breakdowns or psychotic breakdowns, leading the group to believe that Okumura may be behind the incidents.

Due to Ryuji's thoughtless comments about Morgana being useless after Futaba's recruitment, Morgana leaves due to differences, and tries to take Okumura's heart by himself. The group becomes heavily worried, and believing that they might find him in Okumura's Palace, heads to their headquarters. Thanks to Futaba, who discovered the "distortion" of the Palace, they enter the Palace, which resembles a giant space station. Shortly after infiltrating the Palace, though, they are blocked by a door with a biometric scanner, leaving them unable to proceed. Then, to their surprise, Morgana appears alongside another thief, who proclaims herself as "Beauty Thief." At first, the group believes that she is the Black Mask that Madarame spoke of, though they later learn that her intense silence was because of her forgetting her lines. To the thieves shock, Morgana's partner is able to bypass the biometric scanner, though the numerous Shadows forces them to leave.

Deciding to investigate who this new thief is, and under the idea of her being a Shujin student, the group investigates the student 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, and try to ask her to join them, though Haru refuses, the reason being that she cannot side with people who do not understand their friend's feelings. The thieves later learn that many people on the Phan-Site are thanking them for their help, despite not handling their requests, leading them to believe that Haru and Morgana are the ones resolving them. To this end, they enter Mementos, in order to try and convince Morgana to come back. It nearly goes well, until Ryuji makes another thoughtless comment, hurting Morgana's feelings once again and causing him to leave.

When they return to reality, the group discovers Haru being harassed by a man, and Morgana injured. The man introduces himself as her fiance, and at first tries to calmly pass the whole thing off as a little quarrel, but becomes angered by their continued interference, claiming that he will not forget their faces and leaves. Afterwards, the group takes Morgana and Haru to Leblanc, where the latter can rest. The thieves learn that Haru, while having made a contract with her Persona, doesn't have enough power yet to make it manifest, and her reason for agreeing to become a phantom thief was simply to get out of her marriage, and Morgana's reason for leaving is because he is worried about them and cannot bear the thought of staying due to his own weaknesses. The group, however, accepts him back nonetheless, thus mending their relationship.

The group returns to Okumura's Palace, and after bypassing the scanner, encounter Okumura's Shadow, as well as his cognition of Haru's fiance, Sugimura. 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 have many other mistresses. This angers Haru greatly, enough so that her Persona, Milady, finally takes form, and with the help of the party, destroys Cognitive Sugimura. Afterwards, they dive deeper into the Palace, and learn what Okumura truly thinks of his workers - robots who will work under any condition, and will be disposed of 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 explode when a project of Okumura's Shadow is finally completed, allowing him to leave unharmed. 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 later a ruse to trick the thieves and capture them. He then tries to persuade Morgana to try and abandon them, having watched their spat earlier. Morgana, however, refuses, and frees the group.

After they 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; he had requested that they be targeted, but he does not state who is directly responsible for the them. Afterwards, they take the Treasure and leave, unaware that a figure wearing a black mask shoots Shadow Okumura afterwards. On the day Haru was supposed to be sent off to Sugimura, the group celebrates at Tokyo Destinyland, which was reserved for them thanks to Haru. They then watch a video of Okumura holding a press conference, where he reveals all of his sins to the media, though before he can reveal who is truly behind the mental shutdowns, Okumura suddenly collapses, with black liquid pouring out of his orifices.

Sixth Heist: Sae Niijima
In the aftermath of Kunikazu Okumura's death, support for the Phantom Thieves plummets, with many believing that they publicly executed Okumura, even believing 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, be innocent behind the mental shutdown cases, and even Okumura's death. This leads Makoto to suggest getting into contact with Akechi, as he would be a viable 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, though was, in actuality, a ruse to give him time so that he could speak with the group. Akechi reveals that he took photographs of the group entering Okumura's Palace, and even says that he met the true culprit. Akechi is offering his assistance in the matter, though he says, in exchange, the Phantom Thieves must disband.

After the climax of heist in Niijima's Palace, the protagonist uses himself as a bait to lure the Shadows 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. If the protagonist answered correctly, the protagonist reveals he knows that Akechi is the traitor so he already hatched a plan with his friends to expose him. He tells Sae to show his smartphone to Akechi, which has been programmed by Futaba using the Palace's reality-warping ability, saving himself when Akechi attempts to kill him and make it look like a suicide. Afterwards, Sae helps the protagonist escape and escort him back to Cafe Leblanc. Otherwise, if he sold out either the Phantom Thieves or his other Confidants, Sae leaves the room, 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
Once his apparent death is broadcasted, the protagonist is smuggled out of the Police building thanks to Sae and is brought back to Leblanc. Unfortunately with his supposed "death", the protagonist is forced to lay low until the Phantom Thieves can identify the person who Akechi works for. Finding out that a politician Masayoshi Shido is the one Akechi is working for, he and the party tries to find the keyword to enter his Palace, but got nothing until the protagonist remembers his voice, which is the same as the man who falsely accused him before. From his reminiscence when Shido assaulted the woman, the protagonist finds out the keyword to enter Shido's Palace. Shido's palace takes on the appearance of a grand ship with the Diet Building settled atop the grand liner. During the heist, the Phantom Thieves learn more about the Conspiracy and their involvement in the series of events starting from Futaba's palace. They used Medjed as a means to start a sharp rise for the Phantom Thieves' popularity. Then they forcefully manipulated the Phantom Thieves website to spur them into taking on Kunikazu's palace. Finally, they were the ones who ultimately killed Kunikazu, with the new station that broadcasting the conference in full knowledge of the assassination.

After collecting all the Letters of Recommendation to finally enter Shido's treasure room, they are ambushed by Akechi who discovers that the protagonist is alive. Akechi reveals his past, especially his relation to Shido and how he was going to use Shido's election to exact revenge when he stands at the pinnacle after winning the Prime Minister role. 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 Cognition and Shadows go berserk. The protagonist puts up a valiant fight and backs Akechi into a corner. He reveals that he envies the protagonist for his ability to defy expectations put onto him and chart 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 assailant and also reveals his true Persona, Loki. Even after making himself go berserk, Akechi is no match for the protagonist and his friends and is defeated. Suddenly, Shido's Cognition of Akechi appears, revealing that he was fully aware of Akechi's impending betrayal and their relationship. Shido planned on killing Akechi after he was sworn into office, leaving Akechi in disbelief of his actions. When Cognition Akechi tells Akechi to shoot the protagonist, Akechi instead decides to shoot a water lock, causing a large steel wall to separate them from the Phantom Thieves. Despite their pleas from them to help him, Akechi tells the protagonist to stop his father. 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 prepares 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 expose the lies by the Police of his death. With the conditions set, the Phantom Thieves infiltrate Shido's Palace and meets his Shadow who speaks to them about his grand plan to be the next leader of Japan. The protagonist reveals his face to Shadow Shido, causing him to faintly remembers the incident that caused the protagonist's probation. Fueled by his ego he shrugs off the revelation ad he even offers to let the Phantom Thieves join him in his cause in exchange for whatever the desire. The protagonist refuses and a fight ensues. Despite being the toughest Shadow faced, he eventually is brought down. The Phantom Thieves force him to return to his normal self and repent. In the real world, Shido is suddenly overcome with remorse due to his Shadow returning. Having a contingency plan in case the Phantom thieves takes his heart, he takes a special coma-inducing pill, causing his Palace to collapse violently. Despite some complications during their escape and the seemingly death of Ryuji, the Phantom Thieves make it out in one piece. However, even though Shido's crimes are exposed and he formally admits to them, the general public seems unfazed by the news with many still wanting Shido to be Prime Minister.

Final Heist: Mementos
During the climax of the game, the protagonist learns that the Igor who had been helping him is, in truth, a being called Yaldabaoth, who had imprisoned the real Igor, taking over the Velvet Room in the process. He also split the true attendant, Lavenza, into the twins Caroline and Justine, resulting in them possessing amnesia.

The Phantom Thieves are virtually helpless when confronting Yaldabaoth, who easily overpowers them. However, the tables quickly turn when the party hears the voices of the masses, inspired by the cheering of Yuuki Mishima. Eventually, everyone believes in their existence, which leads to the protagonist awakening to his ultimate Persona Satanael, whose size is equal to even Yaldabaoth. The god tries to strike them down, but his attack does nothing. The protagonist then finishes him off, blasting a hole straight through Yaldabaoth's head. Their victory causes the Palace and Mementos to cease from existence. Morgana, who was created to aid the protagonist, also disappears. The world returns to normal.

On Christmas Eve, 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 judge Shido, the protagonist's testimony is necessary. Reluctantly, Sae asks the protagonist to turn himself in to avoid further complication and promises she will make sure his friends will be safe. Doing this also means he will be sent to a youth detention center and will be closely observed. Despite knowing the consequences, to save his friends, the protagonist agrees. Should the protagonist be in a relationship with a girl, he is allowed to spend time with them for Christmas Eve, but is forced to turn himself in the next day. After the interrogation, the protagonist is sent to the youth detention center for illegal entry into Madarame's estate and Okumura Foods' office and hijacking the airwaves.

In response to his arrest, the rest of the Phantom Thieves band together with everyone he cooperated with, trying to look for evidence and gather support from the public to prove the protagonist's innocence. Two months later, they find the woman whom the protagonist helped when she was assaulted by Shido. She testifies against Shido, allowing the probation and charges against the protagonist to be dropped. He is then picked up by Sojiro and taken to the cafe 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 comes shortly after, revealing that the one that disappeared is his other world self while his real world self still exists. Morgana then decides he will stick with the protagonist to look for a way to become a human.

At the end of the game, the Phantom Thieves drive the protagonist back to his hometown. As they begin to see their destination, he uses the roof door to get a better view, smiling in satisfaction.

Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers
The protagonist is shown spacing off during class before he is hit with a piece of chalk by the teacher. Afterwards, he receives a message from Ryuji, who asks him if they want to meet up at the usual place. Later, Ryuji complains about the recent activity regarding the group of burglars who break into restaurants with lax security. Yusuke arrives, parting with Naoya Makigami, and informs the group they have a new request on the "Ask-a-Thief" Channel, in which the client of the requests is fearing for his life. The group agrees to take the request, and the protagonist tails Naoya's older brother, Kazuya Makigami. When Kazuya arrives at the park, he asks Morgana to eavesdrop on their conversation, learning that Kazuya is a part of the group of burglars.

The next day, the protagonist and his friends begin their task of stealing the target's heart. To completely reform them, they need evidence, thus Ann and Ryuji give two of the crooks false information, saying that a shop in Yongen-Jaya is severely lacking in security, and the owner keeps all of his money in the shop. When the burglars arrive, the protagonist sets off a fake alarm system that causes the crooks to flee, though Kazuya takes with him a warning card, supposedly written by the Phantom Thieves.

Later on, the Phantom Thieves of Hearts begin their task to steal the target's heart, entering the Palace. There, they encounter their target; Kazuya Makigami. The client was actually his younger brother Naoya, who stated in the request that Kazuya physically abused him regularly in order to relieve stress from being with his group of burglars. In order to prove this, the protagonist set up the botched attempt to rob the cafe in order to gather evidence that Kazuya was in league with them. However, Kazuya corrects them by stating that he wasn't "with them," but rather the one leading them. Later, Kazuya transforms into a demon, and attacks the group, summoning two other minions.

The protagonist manages to repel and pin down Kazuya by summoning his Persona, Arsene, and then seems to perform a Baton Pass with Yusuke, who proceeds to summon Goemon, followed by Ryuji and Ann. Kazuya seems to relish the fight, saying that he feels de-stressed, and notes how thrilling stealing is. Morgana follows up Ann and destroys the remainder of the minions Kazuya summoned, and the protagonist proceeds to finish Kazuya off, stating that he has "stolen the arrogance in his heart." Afterwards, he takes the Treasure; a key that opens up a drawer in his room. Kazuya requests that he give it to his brother, and tell him to take what's inside and burn it and throw it away. As he disappears, the protagonist and his friends then leave the Palace.

The protagonist is present as Kazuya and his gang is being arrested, after he openly confessed to a large group of people with an officer present, due to being reformed by the Phantom Thieves. Kazuya notices him as he walks away, and asks who he is. Later, the protagonist reunites with his friends back in the Palace, as they note that their next prey is much larger.

Afterwards, the protagonist is then shown to be in the Velvet Room. Igor tells him that what he experienced was a possible future, and refers to him as the "prisoner," asking him what his name is.

Night of The Phantom
The Phantom appears during the final event of Night of the Phantom, where he announces his plan to steal the hearts of the audience with the first gameplay trailer for Persona 5. He is portrayed by voice actor. He is said to have stolen secret material from the event, but that it would be revealed by Famitsu in the near future.

Battle Quotes
Quotes video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbTt0iz-Wvc
 * "Arsene!" or any other Persona names (Hitting weak point/critical with physical skill)
 * "Go! Persona!" (Using Persona skill)
 * "You're mine!" (Using Persona skill)
 * "Go down!" (Using Persona skill)
 * "Ravage them!" (Hitting weak point/landing killing blow)
 * "Show me your true form!" (Tearing off a Shadow's Mask)
 * "I'll reveal your true form!" (Tearing off a Shadow's Mask)
 * "Do it!" (Using Baton Pass)
 * "Leave it to you!" (Using Baton Pass)
 * "Go ahead!" (Using Baton Pass)
 * "Roger!" (Accepting a Baton Pass)
 * "Persona!" (Accessing Persona skill menu)
 * "Let's go." (Accessing Persona skill menu)
 * "Come!" (Accessing Persona skill menu)
 * "That's not right!" (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "Hold on!" (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "No..." (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "This isn't it!" (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "Some other way." (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "There's something else." (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "Not that." (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "Not this." (Backing out of the Persona skill menu)
 * "Calm down." (Idle in Persona skill menu)
 * "I'm not done!" (Idle in Persona skill menu)
 * "Let's see..." (Idle in Persona skill menu)
 * "No changes!" (Backing out of Party menu)
 * "Stay in formation!" (Backing out of Party menu)
 * "This group works." (Backing out of Party menu)
 * "Let's keep going!" (Backing out of Party menu)
 * "Stick to the plan." (Backing out of Party menu)
 * "What's the plan?" (Checking next turn)
 * "Next up" (Checking next turn)
 * "Improvise!" (Changing tactics to Act Freely)
 * "Do what you want." (Changing tactics to Act Freely)
 * "Don't hold back!" (Changing tactics to Full Assault)
 * "Full power!" (Changing tactics to Full Assault)
 * "Save your strength." (Changing tactics to Conserve SP)
 * "Be mindful." (Changing tactics to Conserve SP)
 * "We have to survive!" (Changing tactics to Heal/Support)
 * "Focus on your health." (Changing tactics to Heal/Support)
 * "I'll command you!" (Changing tactics to Direct Commands)
 * "Listen to me." (Changing tactics to Direct Commands)
 * "*sigh*" (Idle in battle)
 * "It's time." (Idle in battle)
 * "There!" (Using items)
 * "I'm using this!" (Using items)
 * "Too slow!" (Dodging an attack)
 * "Saw that." (Dodging an attack)
 * "What!?" (Downed by an enemy)
 * "Gah!" (Downed by an enemy)
 * "Damn it!" (Debuffed by an enemy)
 * "It can't be..." (Incapacitated)
 * "Pillage him Satanael!" (Before firing the Sinful Shell with Satanael)
 * "Begone." (Firing the Sinful Shell with Satanael)
 * "Cross Slash!/Slash!" (Using Izanagi/Izanagi Picaro's Cross Slash skill)
 * "Cadenza!/Leave it to me!" (Using Orpheus/Orpheus Picaro's Cadenza skill)
 * "Doors of Hades!/Let us end it!" (Using Thanatos/Thanatos Picaro's Door of Hades skill)
 * "How about this?/You need proper punishment." (Using Magatsu Izanagi/Magatsu Izanagi Picaro's Magatsu Mandala skill)
 * "Behold forth, sacred tempest!/Violent wind!"(Using Kaguya/Kaguya Picaro's Shining Arrows skill)
 * "Blastoff!/It's educational guidance!" (Using Ariadne/Ariadne Picaro's Beast Weaver skill)
 * "This fight will be your death!/Die, die, die!" (Using Asterius/Asterius Picaro's Titanomachia skill)
 * "Face my fury!"/"Iiit's Sho-Time!" (Using Tsukiyomi/Tsukiyomi Picaro's Abyssal Wings skill)
 * "Reverberate, Orotario!/I can't fall!" (Using Messiah/Messiah Picaro's Orotario skill)

Trivia

 * He is designed to be reminiscent of a cat with a hidden side while the protagonist of Persona 4 was designed to be reminiscent of a loyal and sincere dog.
 * 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.
 * The protagonist's mugshot reads "P508954TS."
 * His code name,, in card games can act as either the ultimate trump card, the beneficial Wild Card, or harmful unmatched card such as in the Old Maid game.
 * Uniquely, 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.
 * In the 5th episode of Persona Stalker Club V, it is revealed that originally the protagonist's initial Persona was going to be Mephistopheles, but was later changed to Arsene since it fits better with the overall theme of the game.
 * Additionally, the protagonist was meant to live with Sae Niijima, though the reasons behind this were not stated.
 * Also revealed in Persona Stalker Club V, the protagonist's design was meant for him wearing his uniform similarly to the styles of the protagonist of Persona 3 and Yu Narukami, in where the jacket was left open.
 * In Sega Festival 2016, the protagonist won second place in fans polling of favorite party member, only beaten by Goro Akechi.
 * When using a DLC Persona, the protagonist's battle quotes change, and sometimes reference the original owners of those Personas.
 * He is the third character to be named 'Joker;' the first two being Jun Kurosu and Tatsuya Sudou from the Persona 2 duology.