Background: Growing up her father was a police officer killed in the line of duty while investigating a gang (if I remember right, he was hit by a vehicle that the gang had hired), leaving Makoto’s sister, Sae, to take care of the both of them. Sae graduates high school and becomes a lawyer and supports the both of them as she tries to survive in a career dominated by men and men that don’t want her there, making her competitive, selfish, stressed, and tired all the time. Makoto studies to make sure that she can go to a good university and get a job that’ll relieve her sister of the burden of taking care of her. She’s the student council president and as the Phantom Thieves become more and more of a problem the principal makes her investigate at the school or he won’t write her a letter of recommendation and will tell her sister that she’s failed her investigation. Eventually, after tailing who she suspects are the Phantom Thieves, she confirms her suspicions when Ryuji shouts that they’re the Phantom Thieves in an area where they meet frequently, the vending machines. Instead of handing this information over the principal, she has them prove their justice by having them reform an unknown mafia boss who has been extorting many students around Shibuya including those go to Shujin Academy. If they can complete the task, she will not expose their identities to anyone. Deep down, Makoto actually approves of the thieves and believes her father would think the same way. She decides to prove her usefulness to the group by purposely acts as bait into the mafia so that the gang can follow behind. Once there, Kaneshiro (the mafia boss) takes photos of the group being merely present in his adult-exclusive nightclub for blackmail material. He demands 3 million yen within 3 weeks for the photos which will ruin their reputations if leaked. The team (composed of Yusuke, Akira, Ryuji, Ann, and Morgana) takes Makoto with them to Kaneshiro’s palace (a floating-bank) there she’s confronted by Shadow Kaneshiro who taunts her by revealing his plan to extort her sister. Angered and disgusted by Kaneshiro, Makoto awakens her Persona, Johanna, and decides to join the Phantom Thieves.

Personality: Perfectionist, responsible, comes across as strict, intelligent, honest and very hardworking. In truth, she is a very compassionate and understanding young lady who works hard to make sure everyone is accounted for. Makoto suffers from an inferiority complex as she feels that her older sister, Sae Niijima, is far more remarkable than she is. The pressure put on her by the Principal of Shujin Academy to find the Phantom Thieves as well as her older sister who accidentally blurts out that she is a burden causes Makoto to devalue herself even more, especially when she fails to produce the results they are looking for. As a result, she becomes increasingly more reckless, with little regard for her own safety, all in the attempt to show that she is useful and dependable. As a Phantom Thief, Makoto gradually gains self-confidence, ultimately becoming a more well-rounded person by the game's conclusion. As quickly discovered when she becomes a Phantom Thief, Makoto has a great deal of suppressed anger which leaks out during her fights, unleashing a very brutal method of fighting.

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