#Eiko Takao

[taitavva]

KOROMARU BUS KOROMARU BUS!!!! OMG.

now i really want to dm u these outfits n everything. wait. omg. monabus is black due to morgana having black fur, and the thieves r more colorful, so korobus being white due to his white fur and the masks' r more earthy-toned/blended-in colors .... omg...

the idea of yaldabaoth color coordinating his champions is so funny to me. Igor is fine with letting the PTs look like any marker you could find in a crayola box. but Akechi's team MUST follow a strict aesthetic color scheme

[moonbuoy]

(aggie.io) i think if akechi lived post-royal, he would probably avoid the thieves. but it would be funny if he surrounded himself with people connected to them on accident

[samasmith23]

A Study in Justice & Romance: Defending Makoto Niijima's Confidant Line

Regarding the romance options with Persona 5 Royal's confidant lines, I personally decided to have the protagonist, Joker, enter a relationship with Makoto Niijima during my initial playthrough.

In addition to Makoto & Joker having earnest & adorable chemistry together, but I chose to have the protagonist date Makoto because the latter ended up being my favorite character in the game overall due to her phenomenal arc as an intelligent socially awkward honors student who actively chooses to help victims of injustice as she gains the courage to stand up against the corrupt adults in her life who expect her to unquestioningly conform to societal norms. Developments that are greatly reflected through Makoto’s confidant line, or social link subplot.

While I’m aware that Makoto’s confidant line is not as well regarded by a sizable portion of P5’s fan base despite the character’s overwhelming popularity in general, I personally believe that Makoto’s confidant arc is criminally underrated! I loved seeing Joker spend free time with Makoto as she attempts to be more interactive & helpful to her peers as Student Council President. In particular, Joker assists Makoto’s efforts to help her new friend Eiko Takao escape an abusive relationship with a sleazy club host named Tsukasa. Essentially, Makoto’s confidant subplot functions as a great extension of her character development in the game’s main plot, since it further forces Makoto to reconcile with her past naivety to the interests & concerns of her fellow students despite her obvious book-smarts.

These developments come to a head during the Rank 9 scene of Makoto’s social link, wherein she confronts Eiko after she investigates her boyfriend and learns that Tsukasa has a reputation within the Tokyo underworld for forcing vulnerable girls into debt to exploit them both financially & sexually. Things come to a head though when a desperate Makoto literally tries to slap the lonely & confused Eiko back to reality while trying to convince the latter that her "boyfriend" is just a criminal trafficker. Heck, Makoto even almost attempts to directly physically challenge Tsukasa before Joker intervenes to protect his friend.

This scene is emblematic of both Makoto’s strong desire to bring about justice for victims of horrific crimes, as well as her own shortcomings derived from her social naivety & brash impulsiveness. Makoto later acknowledges to Joker that her slapping Eiko & trying to physically challenge Tsukasa is reflective of her tendency to not always consider the potential risks or consequences behind her actions in social situations before immediately acting on them. Character flaws that Makoto is determined to overcome after having spent the past several years of her teenage life suppressing her emotions to misguidedly appease authority figures in both her school & family life.

In essence, the Eiko situation is not the first time that Makoto is portrayed as acting so recklessly. Specifically, during the Kaneshiro arc of the game Makoto allowed herself to be captured to discover the location by the aforementioned money-grubbing Mafia boss when he began extorting students at Shujin Academy. Makoto was determined to prove her worth to others after being dismissed as "good girl type of pushover" and "useless" by individuals like Goro Akechi & Sae Niijima respectively, but Kaneshiro exploited Makoto's desperation by blackmailing both her and the Phantom Thieves into financial debt. While the game makes it clear that both Eiko's abusive "boyfriend" and the mobster Kaneshiro are fully to blame for their abhorrent actions, Makoto recognizes in both situations that she can act overly reckless due to having previously bottled up all her emotions to maintain a composed exterior because that’s what Japanese society expected from her as the traditional honors student who obediently followed the orders of authority figures, whether it be Shujin Academy's corrupt principal or her own older sister Sae (plus, I also personally headcanon Makoto’s lack of proper socialization skills and sometimes inappropriate reactions as her potentially being on the autism spectrum, similar to how her teammate Futaba Sakura is heavily autistic coded).

Additionally, the player learns throughout Makoto's confidant arc that her personal sense of justice is heavily inspired by her late father, who in addition to being a single parent who raised Makoto & Sae all by himself following their mother's passing, was a law enforcer who was tragically assassinated while attempting to shut down a human trafficking ring in Tokyo's red-light district. Makoto grew up with an idealistic perception of her father, seeing him as someone who worked tirelessly to protect the victims of horrific crimes exactly like those that Makoto's friend Eiko is at risk of falling prey to in the present day. However, Makoto briefly lost sight of her justice due to the increasing societal pressures that both she and her sister faced following their father's passing. In addition to Sae being forced to stressfully work up the ranks as a legal prosecutor for Japan's Special Investigation Team (SIU) in a sexist male-dominated industry (and her own sense of justice becoming heavily distorted in the process), Makoto herself misguidedly believed that like she had to be the unquestioningly obedient honor's student to not dishonor her older sister's status (which would only increase Sae's stress).

It's only upon awakening her persona, Johana, during the Kaneshiro arc and discovering her inner resolve as a member of the rebellious Phantom Thieves, that Makoto begins reevaluating her passion for studying. Remembering her father's advice, "The most important part of your life is how you choose to live it," Makoto's confidant line is about rediscovering her idea of justice by actively choosing to become more socially involved with the interests and needs of her fellow classmates. Furthermore, it is Makoto's experiences with Eiko in particular that inspire her to want to continue studying not simply because it’s what is expected of her in a patriarchal capitalist society, but because she wants to utilize her knowledge & intellect to protect her fellow students from the world's injustices. This is a goal that Makoto understands that she can’t achieve if she’s all alone, which leads her to actively choose to have Joker help her become more socially interactive and on the level of her peers. 

If I did have one criticism of Makoto’s confidant line, however, its her ultimate decision to academically pursue a career of becoming a police commissioner. While I do understand that Makoto simply wants to continue what she views as her father’s legacy of bringing justice to the victims of some of Japan’s most underreported crimes like sexual assault & human trafficking (which is sadly accurate IRL as well…), her wanting to become a police commissioner to achieve that goal does feel somewhat at odds with P5 Royal’s in-depth condemnations of systemic corruption throughout society, INCLUDING law enforcement. Police corruption is reflected in various examples throughout the game, including Makoto’s older sister Sae having a palace in the Metaverse after her heart became distorted when she actively enabled Japan’s infamous 99% criminal conviction rate to advance her own career as an SIU prosecutor, as well as both the Japanese police and SIU being under the direct payroll of one of the game’s main antagonists, the ultra-nationalist fascist politician Masayoshi Shido,

Despite my objections, I do strongly disagree with critics who argue that this single uncomfortable oversight in Makoto’s otherwise phenomenal confidant arc automatically “regresses/undoes all of her character growth.” As overly naive and idealistic Makoto's career goals & perception of her late father are, they do still make sense from both a narrative and character perspective. The core theme Persona 5 Royal is about reforming society through finding the willpower to stand up against & change the hearts of corrupt authority figures & systems. This is something that Makoto repeatedly demonstrates through her actions as a Phantom Thief, whether it be through emulating her late father’s sacrifice when she rescues Eiko from a human trafficker, her changing Sae’s distorted heart when the latter’s sense of justice is negatively influenced by corrupt bureaucracy, to her opposing the aforementioned Shido’s vast political conspiracy. In this regard, I choose to adopt a more charitable reading of Makoto’s future career dreams by interpreting her as continuing to be a Phantom Thief while eventually growing up into a figure like Batman’s Commissioner James Gordon, who is similarly portrayed as actively fighting against systemic corruption within both Gotham City’s police department & its other bureaucratic institutions (in contrast to a negative example like Harry Potter, who never even tries to reform the Wizarding World’s corrupt status quo and ultimately becomes a slave-owning wizard cop after Voldemort’s defeat). After all, Makoto herself freely acknowledges right before the base game’s final boss battle with Yaldaboth (a false god that serves as the physical embodiment of the corrupt status quo itself), that:

“Victory against a single criminal is meaningless… the true enemy is society itself. Regardless, this isn’t a situation with a straightforward answer. But even if there is no clear solution, I’ll just have to make one… with my own two hands. Before [the Phantom Thieves] came along, my life was defined by rules, set on a path of someone else’s choosing… but only a true loser would live such a rigid life! I… I will win… even if it means going up against the entire world!”

In large measure, it was Makoto's actively willingness to actively strive for positive change within both herself and society as a whole, combined with her keen intellect & altruistic passion for justice despite her social awkwardness & naivety, that ultimately factored into my decision to select the romance option with Makoto’s confidant line. In my playthrough of P5 Royal, I had Joker offer to to become Makoto’s “study partner” when she questions if she’ll ever truly understand romance after a heartbroken Eiko accused Makoto of being doomed to “flunk a test about love.”

The romance option between Joker & Makoto just felt like a natural progression & culmination of the unique bond that the two formed during Makoto’s Confidant Line after joining the Phantom Thieves. Spending time with Joker whilst fighting against systemic corruption and "those rotten adults" in both the Metaverse and the real world helps Makoto realize her own personal sense of justice that is derived from her passion for studying, rather than distinct from it. Additionally, both Joker & Makoto have natural chemistry with each other as intelligent & capable leaders who possess a strong sense of justice (heck… Makoto rarely left my party during combat missions due to her strategic intellect in identifying enemies’ weaknesses as well as her balanced offensive & defensive abilities). Plus, their romantic dialogue & “studying” euphimisms are just hilariously adorable! It was a welcome change of pace to see Makoto be the one to take initiative and ask for consent in the relationship instead of Joker, since most media sadly still downplays or denies the reality that women have their own agency & desires regarding their sexuality.

But yeah, I definitely ship Makoto & Joker as my personal canon couple in Persona 5 Royal due to the former's rich character development & heartwarming chemistry with the main protagonist! While Makoto may have started the game as the "pushover good girl type" who blindly obeys the whims & expectations of the adults in her life simply because it is what society expects from her, she quickly evolves into the Phantom Thieves' strong-minded battle-strategist who is motivated by the unselfish desire to provide justice for the victims of society's injustices. Those elements, combined with Makoto's continual willingness to learn & improve upon her personal shortcomings, as well as her social awkwardness despite her book-smarts (which I heavily related to as someone on the autism spectrum who consistently earned all A's & B's back in high school and college), that made her the breakout character P5 Royal for me!

Overall, it was through completing Makoto's confidant line that I was able to gain a deeper understanding & appreciation of the ideals which define her signature "fist of justice," while also having my heartstrings tugged at as she chose to study areas in life that she lacked experience in such as romance.

[newsonashipopinionpoll]

[moyangi]

the p5r swap where most of the important characters are replaced by the not important characters ft. aged up oda shinya and a murder attempt

(one of these days i will post all the arcana swaps and metaverse designs, but i actually have to be productive)

[anime-ships-all-good]

Niijima Makoto x Takao Eiko

Persona 5

[rollthedice-playthecards]

I also forgot to put a link for this fic for a while now! This is for Social Links that don't really fall in with ARR - a little bit of extra stuff for variety's sake.

First, Rank 1 for a character in Makoto's CANON Confidant!

Come to think of it, I could be doing the same with The Naked Truth...

[dumbacery]

does this ship exist yet or am i driving the boat myself

[symphonic-scream]

Arcana List for my Fool Makoto Arcana Swap

0 - Fool; (Protag) Makoto

1 - Magician; Futaba Sakura

1 - Councillor; Sadayo Kawakami

2 - Priestess; Ren Amamiya

3 - Empress; Yusuke Kitagawa

4 - Emperor; Ryuji Sakamoto

5 - Hierophant; Sae Niijima

6 - Lovers; Haru Okumura

7 - Chariot; Goro Akechi

8 - Justice; Hifumi Togo

9 - Hermit; Morgana

10 - Fortune; Toranosuke Yoshida

11 - Strength; Yuuki Mishima

12 - Hanged Man; Shinya Oda

13 - Death; Tae Takemi

14 - Temperance; Munehisa Iwai

15 - Devil; Eiko Takao

16 - Tower; Sumire Yoshizawa

17 - Star; Kasumi Yoshizawa

18 - Moon; Akira Kurusu

19 - Sun; Takuto Maruki

20 - Judgement; Zenkichi Hasegawa

?? - Faith; Ann Takamaki

[halfmoonism]

Where Wrath's Edge is Sharp (wwes)

hi sorry I am subjecting you to the Horrors (my terrible awful p5 longfic au that I will. eventually? post once I've finished arc 1 (crossing my fingers. we're at 150ish-k at the time of writing and they're still going through the first palace.))

initial post | wwes tag

major p5r spoilers immediately ahead:

short ver: not-quite-roleswap AU where an Akechi who is persona-less until 17 runs into Morgana instead and unwittingly becomes the leader of the “phantom thieves” w/ Morgana, Makoto, Futaba and Sumire, going against sort-of-Black-Mask Joker w/ Ryuji, Ann, Yusuke, and Haru.

long ver: takes a deep breath.

the layout of the iyr/rtg masterpost is so pretty, I'm citing it as inspiration :) I'll start w/ general notes then go into more concise sets of info

misc

no romance! this is an entirely gen found family fic w/ mild alternative chara interpretation (due to differing circumstances) but otherwise sort of follows canon, though the timeline starts abt 8 months before p5r canon (sept 2015)

I'm most likely keeping second and third awakenings, confidant links just take ten million years to progress bc Akechi is. Akechi

new personas: Akechi (Robin Hood -> Skadi, now 2nd persona), Sumire (Cendrillon -> Antigone)

Robin Hood just didn’t make sense for the direction Akechi's chara took (after still feeling helpless, all hope he had that he could be a hero of justice that avenged his mother died); Cendrillon made no sense for Sumire (she never became Kasumi, so the "clock strikes 12/become a different person" theme doesn't fit)

I'm so insane over his 2nd persona being Skadi btw like in mythology Loki killed her dad so. yknow. definitely no parallels there abt being both the victim and the perpetrator or anything

since there's only 5 party members, there is no set nav! Futaba fights w/ a scythe :) this also means everyone else helps teach sumire how to analyze weaknesses after she joins the team :) whoever's nav comments on showtimes as well!

element specializing:

Akechi - curse/psy/gun (Loki), bless/ice/phys (Skadi) Morgana - wind (main healer/buffer + I was not giving him gun sorry lmao) Makoto - nuke/lightning Futaba - psy/fire Sumire - bless/phys

new teams (+ arcanas)

notes: - new arcanas don't reflect the canon storyline, like Akechi being the Tower doesn't mean he has Shinya's canon storyline. it's more about reflections of their personalities and circumstances :) - Ninth Circle links (besides Joker) all break after certain points in the story and reform in third sem

the Espy Division (name courtesy of Futaba)

Futaba initially wanted to name them the Neo Justice Squad V but she was vehemently shut down by Akechi and Makoto lol

Akechi — the Tower

Morgana — Judgment

Makoto — the Chariot

Futaba — the Hanged Man

Sumire — the Fool

the Ninth Circle (name courtesy of mostly Ryuji)

Joker/Ren — Justice

Ryuji — Strength

Ann — the Magician

Yusuke — the High Priestess

Haru — Death

non-team confidants (in order of appearance; might be changed but these are pretty set)

Kiyoko Hagoromo (literally the only OC; goes to Akechi's school) — the Lovers

Lala Escargot — Temperance

Jose — the World

Trader Sakai — Wheel of Fortune

Muhen — the Hierophant

Sojiro Sakura — the Star

Shinya Oda — the Sun

Eiko Takao — the Moon

Shinichi Yoshizawa — the Empress

Hifumi Togo — the Hermit

Mika (Yamanaka) — the Devil

Sae Niijima — the Emperor (only established after interrogation room)

major plot changes

on principle, the Espy Division do not steal hearts. they fight the shadows to metaphorically break through to ppl and go from there. Futaba and Sumire do not steal their own hearts, for example. they go to therapy

Akechi does not awaken when he is 15. he continues to get passed around between foster homes until he lands the internship at the prosecution's office at 17 and immediately moves out to his own apartment

Akechi's very grand plan to take Shido down this time is to gain so much fame and credibility that ppl will actually listen to him when he publicly accuses Shido of all of his crimes. he does this by using the Metaverse to solve cases fast, which naturally makes Makoto suspicious of him

Shido and Sae's palaces are discovered early but not explored until around the time they are in canon. instead Futaba's palace is done first, then Sumire's, then the canon palaces are done in order

Sumire does not become Kasumi! her parents try to send her to therapy but she's so utterly convinced that she doesn't deserve it that she completely avoids Maruki and develops a palace instead (the palace of Acedia; forms as an arena in scramble crossing)

the canon palaces are done but for different reasons (Kaneshiro's is done as the conclusion to a long series of cases Akechi and Makoto were looking into since Dec; Okumura's is done bc Haru insists that they do it; Sae's is done bc she outright threatens to take Akechi and Makoto into custody if they don't turn themselves in)

Joker joins them for Sae's palace. they're all fully aware he's the leader of the enemy team but they reluctantly need his assistance to get past one of the cognitive doors

Joker's confidants (minus the Espy Division members/Shinya/Lavenza/Sae) are still happening in the bg so that's. so very fun for Sojiro when interrogation room comes around

Yaldabaoth declares Joker as the winner immediately after Shido confesses and claims his “prize” by possessing him to terrorize Tokyo. yes this is how I incorporate satanael into the plot

Maruki's reality still comes to pass, but everyone's wishes are appropriately updated. Akechi is not the only person in his apartment. Sumire's not the only sister alive. Joker... Nothing Bad Happens at all to him :)

[fatexbound]

BASICS.

LEGAL NAME: Makoto Niijima

NICKNAME[S]: Mako-chan, Queen, Miss Prez, robot, Miss Post-Apocalyptic Raider, Fist of the Phantom Star.

DATE OF BIRTH: April 23, 1998

GENDER: Female

PLACE OF BIRTH: Kyoto, Japan.

CURRENTLY LIVING: Tokyo, Japan.

SPOKEN LANGUAGES: Japanese, JSL - Japanese Sign Language, English, French, Chinese.

EDUCATION: High school graduate, current University student (verse dependent).

HAIR COLOR: Medium brown.

EYE COLOR: Red.

HEIGHT: 5'5"

FAMILY INFORMATION.

SIBLING[S]: Sae Niijima (older sister)

PARENT[S]: Daisuke Niijima (father, deceased), Ayame Niijima (mother, deceased).

FRIEND[S]: The Phantom Thieves, including Kasumi Yoshizawa, Sophia and Zenkichi Hasegawa, Eiko Takao, Akane Hasegawa.

CHILDREN: None.

PET[S]: None. Wants a tuxedo cat like Morgana to name it Buchimaru.

RELATIONSHIP INFORMATION.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Bisexual

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Verse Dependent

SINCE WHEN: Since the beginning.

Tagged by: no one.

Tagging: you!

BASICS.

LEGAL NAME: Ann Takamaki.

NICKNAME[S]: Ann-chan, Lady Ann (pr Ann-dono), Panther, Annie (by her parents).

DATE OF BIRTH: November 12th, 1999.

GENDER: Female.

PLACE OF BIRTH: California, USA.

CURRENTLY LIVING: Tokyo, Japan.

SPOKEN LANGUAGES: English (native), Japanese (fluent).

EDUCATION: High school student (verse dependent).

HAIR COLOR: Ash blonde.

EYE COLOR: Blue.

HEIGHT: 5'6"

FAMILY INFORMATION.

SIBLING[S]: None.

PARENT[S]: Henry Williams (father), Sayaka Takamaki (mother).

FRIEND[S]: Shiho Suzui, The Phantom Thieves, including Kasumi Yoshizawa, Sophia and Zenkichi Hasegawa, Akane Hasegawa.

CHILDREN: None.

PET[S]: None. Wants a cat or rabbit in the future.

RELATIONSHIP INFORMATION.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Bisexual.

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Verse Dependent.

SINCE WHEN: Since she met Makoto, honestly.

[queenxfjustice]

BASICS.

LEGAL NAME: Makoto Niijima NICKNAME[S]: Mako-chan, Queen, Student Prez, beepboop, Miss Post-Apocalyptic Raider, Koto. DATE OF BIRTH: April 23, 1998 GENDER: Female PLACE OF BIRTH: Inaba, Japan CURRENTLY LIVING: Tokyo, Japan or Kyoto, Japan (verse dependent) SPOKEN LANGUAGES: Japanese, JSL - Japanese Sign Language, English, French, German, conversational Cantonese. EDUCATION: High school graduate, current University student (verse dependent). HAIR COLOR: Medium brown. EYE COLOR: Reddish-brown HEIGHT: 5'5"

FAMILY INFORMATION.

SIBLING[S]: Sae Niijima (older sister) PARENT[S]: Jun Niijima (father), Ayako Niijima (mother) FRIEND[S]: Ren Amamiya/ Akira Kurusu/ Aaron Amamiya, Ryuji Sakamoto, Ann Takamaki, Yusuke Kitagawa, Futaba Sakura, Haru Okumura, Goro Akechi (in some verses), Eiko Takao. CHILDREN: Rina Tycho(Father is Jowi Tycho); Jun and Ceza (twins), Kanji, and Himiko Amamiya (father is Aaron Amamiya). Children are verse dependent! PET[S]: Maruchan - an American Lop rabbit, Ari - Short-haired Chihuahua, Buchimaru - Husky.

RELATIONSHIP INFORMATION.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Bisexual RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Verse Dependent SINCE WHEN: Since the beginning

Tagged by: @themsisversed (thank you!) Tagging: @webbedphantom, @militibus-ex-umbra, @more-than-a-princess, @electricea, @ you reading this right now.

[hubakon1368]

DISCLAIMER: This post is not from the author of the fic. If anyone knows the author’s tumblr (if they have one) please let me know.

Chapters: 59/? Fandom: Persona Series, Persona 5 Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Kurusu Akira/Niijima Makoto, Niijima Makoto/Persona 5 Protagonist, Amamiya Ren/Niijima Makoto Characters: Niijima Makoto, Amamiya Ren (Persona Series), Niijima Sae, Morgana (Persona Series), Sakamoto Ryuji, Kitagawa Yusuke, Takamaki Ann, Sakura Futaba, Okumura Haru, Akechi Goro, Takao Eiko, Suzui Shiho, Sakura Sojiro, Iwai Munehisa, Newspaper Club Member (Persona 5), Maruki Takuto, Igor (Persona Series), Caroline (Persona Series), Justine (Persona Series), Yoshizawa Kasumi Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Wild Card Makoto, Slow Burn, Other Additional Tags to Be Added Summary:

She was captured, drugged, and beaten. Face to face with her own sister. With her life on the line, the founder and leader of the Phantom Thieves, Makoto Niijima, must prove her justice and mend her relationship with Sae... by detailing the events of the past year.

TV Tropes

FanFiction.Net

[moyangi]

ADORE aka Lovers!Eiko Takao in my Side Character Arcanaswap AU

[eight-ball-juice]

Ok, so working on the targets for my P5 Au

Right now, we have

Sugimura Mitsuyo Togo Ryuji Tsukasa Iwai Yaldabaoth

Takemi (Royal Palace)