Click Here for Update 111
: I read back through a couple of my more recent updates, and I’m starting to realize that it seems like I sound a little too bitter about this game - but you have to understand that this part of the game drags real hard.
: “…No, it’s fine. Let him sleep. Students are busy - it’s normal to be tired. I’m a little sleepy myself. I was playing pretend Featherman with my grandchild yesterday and I got a little too invested…”
: Bullshit. I refuse to believe he’s not reliving his glory days in the Heike clan fighting against the Genji clan.
: “What? You all don’t know Featherman? It’s a sentai series that teaches you about justice. We’ll watch it in class someday. …Speaking of which, did you know the concept of ‘justice’ is different in western culture and eastern culture?”
: “Kurusu, look at this.”
: “She holds a set of scales and a sword, and she’s stepping on something… do you know what she’s stepping on?”
: “Wonderful. That’s correct. A lot of stories tend to paint snakes as a symbol of sin, or some kind of agent of evil. In western culture, justice tends to be about enforcing the rules.”
: “If you want everyone to live in harmony, rules are absolutely necessary… so anyone who disrupts those rules might just end up like this snake.”
: “Eastern culture, on the other hand, views justice more like acting and thinking ethically. This exists in the individual. In other words… all humans have their own sense of justice.”
: “It’s not an easy way to live, but… I’m sure you will all be fine. Oh, time’s almost up. So about your homework… none for today! Get some rest. But make sure you’re awake for the next class, all right?”
: “Ushimaru’s really… I’m getting the shivers.”
: And now… it’s nothing but Sumire. Fuck.
: “It’s a special program that revolves around boxercising. It relieves stress, and it’s open to the public… I was thinking you could come along if you wanted.”
: I actually did something like that for a little bit during the pandemic - my mom bought into this on-demand workout video thing and I dropped it after I realized how dumb it was.
: “I’ll introduce you to coach Hiraguchi-san once my lesson ends. She’s an amazing person. She’s been guiding Kasumi and me since we were little.”
: Oh hi, Kasumi. I thought the entire plot was that you were dead.
: “It gets tough after a while. Your limbs start feeling heavier the longer you keep them up. Whenever we did this before, all I could focus on was how well Kasumi was doing. And how much I wanted to stop.”
: “Kasumi was probably so disappointed in me… I got tired out so quick…”
: Get used to the “10 choice” format where half the choices don’t matter.
: “I know I disappointed myself, at least. Kasumi never doubted herself for a second… and then there’s me… oh… I think it’s almost time for my coach to show up. I’m kind of nervous.”
: “You could say that. She’s tough on us, but she’s a great mentor. She’s been helping Kasumi and me for a long time. Even through all my stupid delusions as Kasumi, she never stopped helping me… I don’t know what I’d do without her.”
: …Why is Sumire’s coach a more-or-less accurately aged Jill Valentine?
: “Y-Yes… I’m sorry I worried you. Um, I’ve… I’ve been running away from what happened to my sister.”
: So what you’re saying is that this is Sumire’s… Last Escape?
: “I’m not totally back to my normal self, but I’m working towards a new goal. I want to be the best in the world… so now, I’m going to do what I can as Sumire.”
: “I see… by the way, who’s this?”
: “Oh, um, this is my senpai from school. We both came here for a lesson.”
: “Oh, so you’re… fine. Let’s have you go first, Sumire. You can start with your combination.”
: “Y-Yes, ma’am!”
: “…Okay, you can take a break. We’ll do some more later.”
: “Phew… hah… th-thank you very much!”
: “So… how did I do? I tried to put some real force into that combination.”
: “…You said you were going to perform as Sumire this time. I didn’t see that at all. All I saw out there was Kasumi… or a shadow of her, at least.”
: “Wh-what…?”
: “Kasumi defined her performance by boldness, yes. But that’s not something you can appropriate for yourself. It came from the energy within her. That’s what made her Kasumi.”
: “I told you to think about who you really are. Seems like you still don’t understand what I meant.”
: This reminds me so much of this manga I read called Oshi no Ko, which starts out as an isekai and promptly forgets that in favor of becoming a special interest manga about acting.
: Halfway through, the main character starts getting into fucking acting fights, and that’s the kind of shit they say during those.
: “…”
: “You need to stop hiding behind Kasumi. If you keep denying yourself like this, how can she still call you her rival?”
: …“Huh!? What’s that supposed to…?”
: “I never wanted to draw attention to it, but Kasumi had a very competitive streak. She hated to lose. She would always tell me… she was so jealous of her little sister, and her delicate, graceful style.”
: " ‘I can’t lose to her’, she said. She wanted you to see that."
: “She… she said that? Th-that’s… impossible. Kasumi could do anything, and I… I was nothing…”
: “I’ve said all I wanted to say. But I suggest you think a little harder about it.”
: “…”
: “Okay, it’s your turn now! Get ready!”
: “Thank you, but I’m fine. I noticed she was quite impressed with your physical abilities. Compared to you, though… I was pitiful. Me, graceful…?”
: “Now that I think about it, I guess that’s the one thing my coach used to compliment me on. But even with that, I couldn’t match Kasumi’s performance at all. …And now she says Kasumi saw me as a rival…? I don’t believe it.”
: “I mean, all I was doing was imitating her. Even since the beginning, I was just following Kasumi… that was fine in the beginning. I loved being with Kasumi, and it was fun.”
: “But ever since I started noticing the difference in our gymnastic skills, one thing became clear… I’ll always be someone less than Kasumi. I’m just worthless after all…”
: “Thank you for saying that. You’re very kind, Senpai. Still, something occurred to me when Coach told me what Kasumi said. I realized… just like she wanted to show me what she could do, I still want you to see my own abilities.”
: “You remember? Like when I tried to show off back at the batting cages? Oh… maybe that’s what I need to chase. Maybe that feeling can help me get some confidence!”
: “It sounds like even Kasumi liked my more subtle and delicate moves, so… if I mix it with her aggressive style…”
: This is effectively a direct reference to Sumire’s Showtime attack. Most people are only going to see it on the day you fight Maruki, because it only unlocks when her confidant is maxed.
: This scene makes more sense as an unlock scene than the actual unlock scene, so let’s pretend it unlocks here. I’ll go borrow some footage.
: Sumire’s Showtime is the only one with a name that makes sense. Its Japanese name is “Dances with Phantoms”, and it’s less a Showtime between Sumire and Joker as much as it is between Sumire and herself.
: The footage was taken from this video.
: There’s a couple of frames of pure motion blur that are impossible to capture.
: It’s not a Hashino game without creepshots of underage girls.
: You may recognize this last shot from the Yusu-Gay I posted after the school festival. Oh, and add “The fact that Dances with Wolves was not in fact about dancing” to the list of shit the writers don’t understand.
: In case you’re wondering what the English name for that attack is, it’s “Dances with Thieves” which completely misses the fucking point.
: “Right? Maybe I’ll be able to step up my routine! If the key here is showing you what I can do, then I just need you to watch me again…! Senpai, will you go out with me again?”
: “Th-Thank you so much. As long as I’ve got you behind me, Senpai, I can keep moving forward.”
: “I’ll think about what else I can do. When I figure it out, I’ll let you know. Oh, is it time already? Let’s get going.”
: “Coach Hiraguchi’s so strict, isn’t she? She wasn’t going easy on you at all… she used to make me and Kasumi work so hard. She was so harsh, she even made me cry a couple times.”
: “But Kasumi said she was probably tough on us because she saw our potential. Thanks to Kasumi supporting me with her strength, I kept working hard.”
: “It didn’t seem like you were struggling at all, though. You might be just as tough as Kasumi… amazing.”
: “Oh, I see… so you let the struggle fuel you. I wish I could do that. I can’t stop thinking about what she mentioned, though… my own energy, huh…? I guess I’m the only one who can find that answer.”
: Thank fuck that’s over. This entire situation with Sumire feels like the writers forgot she existed for half the game and realized it only when they had gotten to the end of the game.
: We can buy the Supernova Burger at Big Bang Burger to do the final trade in Kichijoji. This gets you a Soma, so it’s totally worth it.
: You know, Persona 5 Royal is a lot like how I once heard someone describe what watching Lucky Star in reverse would be like. Joker has run out of things to do, and all that’s left is to talk to Sumire.
: The joke is that they’re dressing Sumire like an old anime lady.
: “I see. Well, I guess it’s important to have a balanced diet…?”
: Joker stands there and shouts “Walk up to Sumire!”
: “Oh, Akira-senpai! I’m glad you made it!”
: “I tried this ensemble based on the staff’s advice, but what do you think? I’ve definitely been getting attention in this. Some people are even staring! This is sort of like showing off my own style, right!?”
: Sumire is too dumb to live.
: “O-Oh, you don’t like it? I thought it was a pretty cool outfit… well, to be honest, I could tell some of this was a little off. I mean, they say these are leopard spots, but it could just as easily be some kind of… mutant giraffe. Anyway, I should change.”
: “…So once again, I totally misinterpreted everything and made no progress at all. Classic Sumire. I wasn’t like this when I was looking for my father’s glasses… I feel like I’m doing so much worse than when I thought I was Kasumi…”
: “I don’t even know if I’m worth showing off, let alone how to do it.”
: “You’re right. I have you, Senpai. I need to make sure you see the real me… Okay. I don’t have time to be lost in my thoughts. I’ll find some clothes that’ll help me show off my true self!”
: “But still… look at how many different styles there are. Huh? Why does this sweater have a hole…? Where is this string going…? Um, what do I do now…? This is a lot harder than I thought.”
: “Hmm… this isn’t it… all of these clothes are very stylish, but I’m not sure I’d really want to be seen in them… how do I want to be seen…?”
: Hopefully as little as possible, because fuck I already hate you.
: “Or… how do I want Senpai to see me? Senpai… Senpai… hmm…”
: Seriously though, I thought Akechi’s writing sucked. This is something fucking else.
: “W-Well, yes…! But if you look at me, I don’t know what to do! …Oh! R-Right. Maybe it shouldn’t be that one-sided… if I give other people attention, then surely I’d get attention in return.”
: “I think I get it. Oh…! I think I’ll try on… this one!”
: “Um, what do you think?”
: “Wh…What!? D-Did you just say what I think you said!? You said you’re… in love…?”
: “S-Sorry, I know you didn’t mean anything by it, I just wasn’t ready, I mean my heart wasn’t, so I’m kind of- H-Hold on, I need to calm down… okay, deep breaths… hahhh, phew…”
: “B-But I really am happy to hear that. Thank you. For letting me show you a part of myself. I’ve made up my mind. Um, could you wait here for a second? I need to go buy this.”
: Does this event ever fucking end? Holy shit.
: “Umm, I’m not sure if I can call it an answer, but… thanks to you, I think I realized something. When I first saw that piece, I kind of fell in love with it. And um… it’s a little embarrassing to say this, but…”
: “My first thought was that I couldn’t wait for you to see me in it. I wondered what kind of face you’d make, or how you’d react… I wanted to see that side of you…”
: “Oh, um - I don’t mean anything weird by that. I just wanted to… show myself off to you, I guess. To see you, and be seen. The more I thought about it, the more important that feeling became.”
: Who the hell wrote this? What dipshit thought that actual people talk like this?
: “And then, suddenly, I just… realized I wasn’t nervous anymore.”
: “I’ve always been really bad at making decisions on my own… I mean, Kasumi always picked perfect things for me anyway. I never knew making my own decisions could feel validating.”
: “So I didn’t really feel a need to choose anything for myself. After all, nobody expected me to. But today, I picked something because I liked it. And I felt confident in that.”
: “Even if you didn’t like it… I don’t think that’d change how I feel about it.”
: You know how I can tell no one proofread this shit? I can tell because anyone who proofread this would immediately go “This conversation fucking drags” and cut half of it out.
: “Yes! And I feel great about it! Is this what Coach meant? About Kasumi wanting me to see how she felt…? If that’s true, then… did she really think I was…?”
: “Well, I can’t say for sure… but I think as long as I’ve got you supporting me, I’ll be okay.”
: “Now, we should head home. Thanks for coming out with me today. Oh, should we go buy some clothes for you next time? You could always try on that savannah ensemble. I think it might even suit you better than me… maybe.”
: “Having you watch helped me find something I really liked. Oh, um… when I say it like that, it’s actually a little embarrassing… b-by the way, where do you like to get your clothes from, Senpai?”
: Joker’s like “The clothes I get from dead demons are technically in a world inside my cell phone, so I’ll say that’s online.”
: “I see. Well, online shopping’s definitely convenient. But don’t you get worried? The clothes always look so different in person than they do in the display pictures…”
: “I’d love to hear what you consider when you’re picking things out. Isn’t it so fun to pick out clothes, though? That one I bought today was so gorgeous. It’s almost too nice for me to actually wear it.”
: “Though I guess that defeats the purpose, if I want people to see me in it… ahaha. Oh, I guess I’d better let you go. Talk to you later…”
: We spend the night sipping boyfriend juice at the club with Yusuke, because…
: It gets us Arms Master. One of the reasons I don’t typically use the physical-type characters in Persona games is because they can get shut down very easily - their offense is entirely dependent on their HP, whereas Ann doesn’t really give a shit how much HP she has so long as she has SP.
: Arms Master lowers the chances of Yusuke getting oneshotted after using skills, and also makes it harder for enemies to shut him down completely.
: There’s a segment on the train I’m going to skip, because it’s letting you know about the fishing pond - we did an event with Ryuji and Kawakami there once.
: The fishing minigame is god the fuck awful. I tried it offscreen, and it’s… bad. You have to catch fish to get bait to catch bigger fish and the whole thing is totally not worth it.
: We have Sumire’s Rank 9 today. Buckle up for another conversation that’s going to drag the fuck out as long as possible.
: “Thank you. I just needed to talk to you about something in person.”
: “Mm… it’s really good. Something about it is relaxing. I think I’ll be ready to show Coach Hiraguchi my performance soon. And if you wouldn’t mind, I’d like you to be there when I do… is that okay?”
: “Great! I’m so glad… but that’s not what I came here to talk about. Do you remember what I said when we went clothes shopping? I talked about wanting you to see me, and how that helped me stop worrying?”
: “I’m so glad you remember. I was thinking about Kasumi… I wondered how she must have felt. Thinking she didn’t want to lose to me, and wanting me to watch her…”
: “Maybe that’s what we had in common. We both wanted someone specific to see our efforts - to see us as we are. As long as we have that someone watching us, we can stay strong.”
: “So I finally realized something. I think part of Kasumi’s strength came from that. …I was the one she was thinking of. I never heard her say it, but…”
: “Maybe she’d been trying to tell me through her performance. Haha… I can’t believe it took me this long to figure it out… I’m such an idiot. But I’m glad I finally realized it.”
: “Even as worthless as I am, I hope I still helped Kasumi somehow…”
: “Yes… I think so too. …Kasumi’s beyond any apologies I could give her. I can’t tell her how I feel. She’ll never see me perform. That’s reality, and it happened because of me. I’ve been running away from that for a long time.”
: “But I’m done running now. It’s time to stand on my own two feet. I want to live for both of us now. For the sake of everything we wanted. I want to grow even stronger.”
: “Even if I end up in tears from failing at a meet, or if the pressure’s too much for me sometimes… with Kasumi’s confidence, and the grace she recognized in me… I’m going to keep moving up.”
: “I’m going to show Kasumi who Sumire Yoshizawa really is.”
: “Um… and so… now that I’m committed to, you know, not running away from my feelings… I, um… th-there’s something I need to tell you, Senpai!”
: I missed a correct answer here: the correct answer is the third one, and I don’t know why. It seems really arbitrary. I don’t think you absolutely need this one to rank up, and even if you did we have enough free days (and/or money to pay Chihaya) that it doesn’t matter.
: “Oh! I-I’m sorry! I’m getting to it! I realized it was less a matter of showing off, and more wanting someone to watch me… that is, wanting someone special to watch me. Someone I’d want to have eyes only for me.”
: “And I thought to myself, well, for me, that special person’s obviously Senpai! So… I think that means…”
: “I’m in lo… l-l-lo… I’m in… lo…”
: “Um, but… the last thing I want to do is make you uncomfortable, so…”
: This is the splitting point between the romance and non-romance routes. We’ll be promptly friendzoning Sumire, and doing her Rank 10 next update.
: There’s not really much content left, depending on whether people want to see the last two Mementos requests or not. We have no reason to do them, but I’ll leave it up to you.
: “…! Thank you so much, Senpai. I’m glad you could be honest with me. And I’m still happy I told you how I felt. I don’t regret anything. Even if you don’t feel the same, I’ll hold onto my feelings and let them drive me forward.”
: “Oh, but please - things don’t have to be different between us now, okay? I love and admire you as a friend, too. No matter what, that won’t change. So I’d still like for you to keep your eyes on me. Even just as friends.”
: “Just watch me, and I promise I’ll keep improving!”
: “Of course! I’ll be counting on you! Ah, and you can always rely on me too. I want to help you as much as I can. Oh, it’s already this late…? I need to get to practice…”
: “Thank you so much for the coffee. Now, if you’ll excuse me…”
: “My heart is still pounding, actually. I managed to tell you how I feel… that would have been unthinkable for my past self. I really feel like I’ve matured. And I’m really glad for your part in that, Senpai.”
: “I’ll always hold onto this feeling, and I’ll use it to keep moving forward! Oh, I’ll be heading out soon. I’m about to have Coach Hiraguchi watch my performance.”
: We’ve got another crossword puzzle tonight, and then I’m calling it.
: Next time, we’ll see Sumire’s Rank 10, get the rest of the room decorations, and then hopefully get to see the scene on 2/2.