Characters / Thieves Can Be Heroes! - The Phantom Thieves

Thieves Can Be Heroes! Main Character Index
The Phantom Thieves | Antagonists | Confidants | U.A. High School | Vigilantes | Other Characters

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The Phantom Thieves

The Thieves In General

• All of the Other Reindeer: Izuku probably gets it the worst, but none of the Thieves are particularly popular among their peers, becoming each others' closest friends simply because there's no one else for them to lean on.
• Anti-Hero: Even though they're all good people who work towards a selfless cause, the public sees them like this, subverting the legal routes of heroics to brainwash people into becoming good. The Thieves themselves are also skeptical of their methods at times, but the people they target are usually so incredibly evil that nothing but good could come out of their Brainwashing for the Greater Good. In some cases though, the Thieves' own vices, such as Ann's thirst for revenge against Kamoshida, can make them go against their better judgment at times, though they always do the right thing in the end.
• Black-and-Gray Morality: The Thieves are the Gray against a series of extremely corrupt adults who make the lives of children and teenagers miserable. While their actions are inexcusable under the law, they continue to steal the hearts of the unjust in hopes of making the world a better place. This is muddied further by the fact that the story takes place in the world of My Hero Academia, meaning that their actions are punishable and illegal if they're ever caught.
• Code Name:
  • Morgana has the Thieves take up Code Names to keep their identities hidden from the Shadows and cognitive entities in peoples' Palaces.
    • Izuku - "Hero"
    • Ryuji - "Skull"
    • Morgana - "Mona"
    • Ann - "Panther"
    • Makoto - "Queen"
    • Yusuke - "Fox"
    • Bakugou - "Nitro"
• Cool Mask: All of them gain a mask that represents their Persona while acting as phantom thieves. They pull it off when they want to materialize their Persona. Izuku gets extra points for his steel mouthguard, which covers the bottom half of his face and is engraved to resemble All Might's toothy smile, just like his canon counterpart's costume.
• Fire-Forged Friends: The Thieves are inseparable, having saved each others' lives more times than they can count while running through the Metaverse.
• Henshin Hero: Their clothes transform into their thief gear once they're in the Metaverse and gives them access to their Personas. Izuku also notices that he's faster and feels lighter in the Metaverse, allowing him to leap great heights and perform acrobatics that he would never be capable of in reality.
• Impossible Thief: Their M.O. They steal the embodiments of the distorted desires within human hearts, which removes them from the cognitions of their targets. This leaves the target with all of their memories of what they've done but none of the desire to continue performing their heinous acts, which makes them better people. Izuku is quick to point out that this is essentially brainwashing someone into becoming a better person and has severe reservations about it at first, especially when Morgana admits that doing it wrong can potentially kill the target or leave them a vegetable. But he ultimately accepts it as a necessary measure when he realizes that many horrible people would be able to escape the notice of Heroes and law enforcement and would go unchecked otherwise.
• Mundane Utility: The Thieves pawn off the Treasures and loot they steal for cash and use whatever money they get to plan more heists or simply hold otherwise expensive celebration parties after a job well-done.
• Non-Uniform Uniform: All of the Thieves take liberties with their school wear. They get remarkably little flak for this.
  • Izuku's only modification to his uniform is that he wears his trademark red-and-white sneakers instead of black loafers or dress shoes.
  • Ryuji leaves his blazer unbuttoned and trades the required turtleneck for a yellow T-shirt with a star on it and "ZOMG!" as shown in his art below. He also lets the suspenders hang out on the sides rather than keeping them under his jacket. Like Izuku, Ryuji also wears his favorite sneakers in place of the required dress shoes.
  • Ann wears a sports hoodie in place of a turtleneck under her blazer and has red leggings instead of the standard black, which is also shown in her art. She also wears high-heeled brown boots instead of black loafers.
  • Makoto wears a Waistcoat of Style instead of the standard blazer and brown boots instead of loafers.
• Phantom Thief: Duh. Morgana coaches them all through the steps of being a phantom thief, between information gathering, sending calling cards, making tools, and combat.
• Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Much like the source material, the Phantom Thieves are all people who are ostracized in a society that has wronged them and turns a blind eye to their pain and suffering.
  • Izuku was subjected to a Trauma Conga Line for being Quirkless and left with a criminal record for trying to save a woman from being raped.
  • Ryuji was the star of the track team until his abusive coach spurred him into fighting back, leaving him with a broken leg and the dissolution of the track team that now hates him for destroying their chance to go to the nationals.
  • Ann is slut-shamed solely because of her Caucasian features and is pressured into providing sexual favors for Kamoshida in order to preserve her friend Shiho's well-being and chances on the volleyball team.
  • Morgana is amnesiac and believes himself to be human, but was trapped for an indeterminate amount of time inside Kamoshida's castle.
• Secret Identity: All of them have to keep their activities a secret lest they get in trouble with the law for Vigilantism under Quirk control laws as well as the morally ambiguous nature of their M.O. This goes double for Izuku, whose criminal record and tenuous probation means that he'll be sent to jail if he's ever caught.
• Superhero Packing Heat: They all bring (model) firearms to fight the Shadows in the Metaverse. Because the Shadows think they're real, the Cognition effect kicks in and makes the guns act like the real thing, which only reinforces the Shadows' Cognition.
• Tarot Motifs:
  • Each of the Thieves is linked to the arcana that their Persona represents, which reflects some of their character traits and personalities.
    • Izuku is the Fool, a card of beginnings, new possibilities, and undiscovered potential. Izuku's life was turned upside down by his brash decision to save someone he didn't even know, but it also opened new doors to him that can give him a chance to access his potential to wield a Persona that he never knew he had. His growth revolves around learning how to access his new potential and become a hero in a way that he never thought possible while shedding the burdens that plagued him in the past.
    • Ryuji is the Chariot, a card of strong will, a mastery of the self, and earning the respect of others. Ryuji is exceptionally strong-willed and determined but struggles to rein in his emotional and oftentimes dangerously reckless impulses. His character growth revolves around him learning how to focus on his own goals without worrying about what others think of him, such as the derision he receives from the track team for his role in dissolving it.
    • Morgana is the Magician, a card of active energy, knowledge, and turning the natural elements into personal power. Morgana is the Exposition Fairy Mentor Mascot of the group who introduces the Thieves to the Metaverse and guides them along their path.
    • Ann is the Lovers, a card of choices, relationships, and love in all its forms. Her character struggle revolves around how her striking looks make her an object of desire wherever she goes and learning how to develop relationships beyond a superficial level.
    • Makoto is the Priestess, a card of passive energy, intuition, and guidance. Makoto is rather reserved compared to the other thieves, bottling her emotions inside and trying to approach her problems logically. Her keen mind makes her a valuable source of insight, but her repressed anger over her trampled dreams and inability to do what she thinks is right can push her over the edge.
• To Be Lawful or Good: The Phantom Thieves go after people who are so irredeemably evil that stealing their hearts is guaranteed to better the lives of others. But no matter how much good they do, it doesn't change the fact that their actions are unsanctioned and illegal under Quirk control laws. This means that they could all be severely penalized (and in Izuku's case, sent to jail) if they are ever caught. Makoto is quick to bring this up to Izuku after he tells her about the Metaverse and how the Phantom Thieves do their work, creating a schism between them.
• Took a Level in Badass: As they become more and more acquainted with the Metaverse, Izuku and the rest of the Thieves go from fumbling around Kamoshida's Palace to steamrolling his Mooks with grace and coordination.

Izuku Midoriya / "Hero"

Izuku Midoriya / Hero

Arcana: 0. Le Mat (The Fool)

Persona: Carter, Wild Card

Weapons: Staves and Revolvers

Quirk: Quirkless

Carter: "Well said, my boy! We are in agreement! Now then, let's seal our contract with a vow! I am thou... thou art I... I shall grant you the power to enact justice on this world! Never regret! Never surrender! Never doubt! If society chains you for being a hero... then rip those chains off and save them, whether they want you to or not!"

In another time and another place, Izuku Midoriya would have become the successor of his favorite Hero and lifelong idol, All Might, inheriting the sacred torch of One For All to battle Villains and become the World's Greatest Hero. But instead of meeting All Might, Izuku tried his best to save a woman who was being sexually assaulted but was somehow charged with assault for pulling the drunken molester off his would-be victim. Now burdened by a criminal record and his Quirklessness, Izuku's heroic aspirations have become all but impossible. But not all was lost for this would-be Hero. After stumbling into the Metaverse and awakening the power of his Persona, he soon finds that even thieves could be Heroes in their own right.

His Persona is Carter, a Virginian soldier who was transported to Mars and became an Action Hero with his greater strength relative to the Martians. He represents the Fool Arcana.

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• A Boy and His X: Morgana ends up being taken into Izuku's care while they're in reality, where Morgana is transformed into a normal-looking house cat, giving them this relationship. Izuku treats him more like an equal than a pet, but the two are extremely close and Morgana is constantly tagging along on almost all of Izuku's misadventures and hijinks.
• The Ace: In a fit of irony, Izuku becomes this for the Phantom Thieves after being called useless and worthless his whole life. His Initial Persona is exceptionally powerful, he's smart enough to tutor his older teammates in various subjects despite being a year behind them, and he is the only one who can use multiple Personas. His various contacts are also a necessity to keep the Thieves stocked up for their heists. It also gets downplayed in that he's horribly unpopular outside of his circle of friends and contacts and he's still largely considered scum by the world at large. Ryuji and Ann are also much better at handling themselves in social situations than Izuku is.
• Adaptational Angst Upgrade: Izuku has plenty more to angst about in this story. His dreams of becoming a Pro Hero are nigh-impossible now that he's Quirkless and a criminal, he's more of a social pariah than ever thanks to his record, he suffers a Heroic BSoD over his failure to stop Shiho from attempting suicide, and he's forced to face the fact that the Heroes he's looked up to his entire life have not solved all of society's problems after seeing Kamoshida get away with his abuses. He slowly recovers with the help of his new friends, the Phantom Thieves, who provide him with the companionship and emotional support that he's lacked for most of his life.
• Adaptational Name Change: Due to Izuku's long-held dream of becoming a Pro Hero, Ryuji decides that "Joker" simply doesn't fit Izuku as a Code Name, prompting him to call Izuku "Hero" instead while acting as a phantom thief.
• Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: In the original game, Joker and Makoto are complete strangers to each other at the start of the story. Here, she's Izuku's Childhood Friend and someone he actively looks up to. She supports him in his investigation of Kobayakawa and is generally concerned for his well-being.
• Adaptational Superpower Change: Izuku is still Quirkless, but he has the power of the Wild Card instead of One For All this time around. In addition, his superheroic tendencies compared to Joker's Anti-Hero tendencies have given him Carter for a Persona rather than Arsene.
• Affectionate Nickname:
  • Makoto calls him "Midori" for short.
  • Carter frequently calls Izuku "kid" or "my boy" similarly to how All Might does in canon.
  • Sae also calls him "Little Izu".
  • Tae and Mei call him "Guinea Pig".
  • Iwai takes to calling him "Mumbles" for his Character Tic.
• Age Lift: Izuku was initially depicted as a second-year student to match the age of the other protagonists in the first draft of the story, but this was later changed so that he was a first-year student after complications arose in the storytelling.
• All-Loving Hero: Despite being dealt a consistently bad hand in life, Izuku refuses to treat others with anything less than kindness and respect unless they prove themselves unworthy of it. He founded the Phantom Thieves in hopes of galvanizing people who have faced abuse to stand up to their aggressors and wants to make the world a better place by forcing the horribly corrupt to repent. Even then, he strictly refuses to kill any of his targets no matter how horrid they might be.
• All of the Other Reindeer: Izuku has suffered this his entire life for being Quirkless and he's even more of a pariah now that he's officially a criminal. Notably, he is the only member of the Thieves whose reputation gets worse after Kamoshida's heart is stolen, as the rest of the student body thinks that he's lying about being Quirkless and has a hidden brainwashing Quirk. It doesn't bother him as much as it used to, because he now has a set of people he can call friends for the first time in the longest.
  Izuku: [mumbling dejectedly] Well... it's not like anyone had a good opinion of me before, right? So I guess it's something I'll just have to accept.
  Morgana: Izuku...
  Izuku: If that's the worst thing to come of stopping Kamoshida, I'm okay with it. [begins to smile] I have you guys now, so it won't be so lonely.
  Ryuji: Aw shucks, man! You're gonna make me blush over here! [laughs and pulls Izuku into a friendly headlock] You know I got your back, dude.
  Ann: [smiles and gives a thumbs-up] We are a team, after all.
  Morgana: As expected of our leader to bear such a cross on his back.
• And This Is for...: Izuku drops this line against Kamoshida's Shadow, but forgoes the usual list in favor of one, succinct statement punctuated by a Virginia Smash.
  Izuku: This is for all the students you've hurt! For everyone who couldn't fight back! Virginia... SMASH!
• Aura Vision: While infiltrating Kamoshida's Castle, Izuku obtains the ability to use the Third Eye from Igor. This allows him to see potential Confidant links, the overall danger level a Shadow poses to him, and places of interest such as the mechanisms for various puzzles or potential pathways for infiltration. Combined with his existing Awesome by Analysis, it rarely takes him more than a few minutes to solve most puzzles. He's especially grateful for this ability, since it's almost like being given a Quirk.
• Arrested for Heroism: Izuku should have been praised for intervening when a woman was in the midst of getting sexually assaulted. Instead, he was the one put on trial for doing what should have obviously been the right thing to do while the molester walked away scot-free.
• Awesome by Analysis:
  • Izuku's greatest strength is still his fast-working brain, allowing him to quickly see through the puzzles in Kamoshida's castle, come up with a strategy to defeat hordes of Shadows with minimal effort while the Thieves were exhausted, and find new applications for any information he learns about the Metaverse. Morgana is impressed and almost unnerved by how insightful Izuku can be at times, sometimes coming up with solutions to Metaverse problems before Morgana can.
  • Caroline and Justine are stunned when Izuku manages to fuse a Jack Frost with Mabufu shortly after being informed that he could resummon any of his previous Personas with the compendium.
• Badass Cape: Carter wears a flowing red one that he dramatically flourishes upon being summoned for the first time.
• Badass Creed: Carter has one as part of his Rousing Speech to Izuku.
  Carter: Never regret! Never surrender! Never doubt! If society chains you for being a hero... then rip those chains off and save them, whether they want you to or not!
• Badass Driver: Subverted. Izuku is placed in charge of driving the Morganamobile not because he's especially good at it, but because he's the least likely to drive everyone into a wall. His foot is constantly on and off the brakes, resulting in a rather jerky ride until he gets more comfortable with it. While escaping from Madarame's Palace, Izuku immediately asks Makoto to drive since she has an actual license.
• Bad Liar:
  • Izuku's flimsy excuses for his activities rarely fool anyone for long. He's only lucky that most people don't press him about his strange absences and need for supplies like model firearms and back-alley medicine.
  • Takemi isn't fooled by his excuses for a second and only goes along with him out of amusement during their first meeting at her clinic. After he returns, she's quick to interrogate him about what he really needs her medicine for.
• Badass Longcoat: Izuku has the same trench coat worn by Ren in addition to the rest of his thief outfit, which is a black and red version of his second Hero Costume in his home series (named Costume Beta◊) with the cowl being exchanged for his thief mask.
• Bad Powers, Good People: Izuku knows how easy it would be to abuse his access to the Metaverse to brainwash or even kill people by attacking them in the Cognitive World, but he has no intention of using his abilities for anything but stopping criminals.
• Berserk Button:
  • Deriding one's own Quirk or using it for evil. Having grown up wanting a Quirk his entire life, Izuku quickly gets worked up whenever someone hates their Quirk or calls it useless, as he instantly comes up with applications for things that he will never have.
  • Hurting Makoto. While he's close to all of the Thieves, he's known Makoto the longest as the sole supporter of his dream of becoming a Hero. He instantly flies into an irrational rage when she's hurt.
• Beware the Nice Ones: After Shadow Chisaki is defeated but refused to return to his original self, he is the one that comes up with the idea to warn the Yakuza with death threats, whispering it to Bakugou and let him and eventually his teammates carry it until Chisaki begs them to stop once they threaten him to cut off his hands to stop using his Quirk.
• Born Unlucky: Izuku is part of the unlucky 20% of the population to be completely Quirkless. If this wasn't bad enough, it gets astronomically worse, as listed under Trauma Conga Line.
  Izuku: [internally as he's cornered by Shadows] I-I can't escape! Th-there's nowhere for me to go or run to! [tears well up in his eyes] I-I'm gonna die here... why? Why has the world been so cruel?!
• Brains and Brawn: The Brains to Ryuji's Brawn. Izuku is the more intelligent of the two of them and is shorter, thinking through most of his problems. At the same time, he's more meek than Ryuji and a little less willing to stand his ground unless the going gets tough. On the other hand, Carter is the most physically inclined of all of the Thieves' Personas, making this a zig-zagged trope.
• Break the Cutie: Ever since he was a child, Izuku wanted to be someone who could save others with a smile on his face, just like his idol, All Might. But then he found out he was Quirkless and after knowledge of it came out, that hopeful dream became an endless fountain of mockery, bullying, and scorn that plagued him all the way through his middle school years as he was derided as worthless and useless. Through all of this, he continued to cling to his dream in hopes of one day being able to help others and prove everyone wrong. Then, without thinking, he runs to save a woman who was screaming for help as a slime-ball tried to sexually assault her. This one act of altruism ends with the woman he saved accusing him of assaulting the man he tried to save her from, giving him a criminal record and making him miss the U.A. Entrance Exam. Then he has to move away to live with a complete stranger who doesn't shy away from telling Izuku that he doesn't care about him. Then the teachers at his new school treat him like the worst scum on Earth when he has only just met them. After telling himself for the past eleven years of his life that there had to be some way he could become a Hero, reality sets in and he finally breaks down into inconsolable sobbing as he finally admits that his stupid, childish dream is now (and probably always was) a complete impossibility. At this point, it's hard to blame him. Thankfully, getting new friends and becoming a phantom thief has helped him recover.
  No matter how many times he told himself to endure, things never changed.
  He couldn't push his way through this situation like his bullying or his classes. Neither of those things had stolen his chance of achieving his dream.
  It was like being told he was Quirkless again for the first time. He couldn't keep fooling himself.
  He will never be a Hero.
• Butt-Monkey: Izuku is on the receiving end of much of the story's verbal and physical slapstick, whether it's getting a chop on the head from Makoto for worrying her, getting teased for his Hero obsession by Morgana, or knocking himself out with a horrid potion cooked up by Takemi.
• Calling Your Attacks: Necessary when using magic and when Izuku calls out his various Personas. Izuku also does this when having Carter replicate All Might's various Smash attacks.
• Cannot Talk to Women: He practically melts when Ann asks to trade phone numbers with him or when he's trying to pull her to safety. The only girl he's remotely comfortable with at first is his Childhood Friend Makoto and he constantly has to talk himself into acting like he's speaking with her whenever he's conversing with a girl he only barely knows. Takemi loves abusing this for a quick laugh. He's also very uncomfortable when he learns that fusing Carter and Silky creates Succubus.
  Izuku: [blanching while trying to push Ann out of the Metaverse to safety] S-s-sorry, Takamaki-senpai!\\ [internally] This is for her own good, this is for her own good! D-don't think J-Just pull her along to safety!
  Ann: [to Ryuji] H-Hey! Where did you just touch me?!
• Character Tics: Izuku's mumble storms are still in full force, causing everyone to lampshade and point it out to him.
  Izuku: [mumbling] We don't want to have to fight every single Shadow. Takamaki-senpai is tired and we want to have enough energy for getting to the exit. We might not have a choice right now, but I'd like for us to use as little stamina possible... but how...? Think... We could try to hold our ground like Ryuji-senpai suggested. In this small room, their numbers would be pretty limited. But still, if we get more like the golden armored captain, that might take a lot out of us. Even so conflict is unavoidable at this point. Think, Izuku think...
  [has a "Eureka!" Moment] I-I think I've got something. [realizes everyone is staring at him] W-was I-
  Ryuji and Morgana: Yep.
  Ann: Do you... do that a lot?
  Morgana: He does.
• Childhood Friend: Although she's two years older than Izuku, he was good friends with his neighbor Makoto when they were younger, having defended him from bullies "like a lioness would her cubs". Because of this, she is the only girl in his age group he can comfortably talk to until he gets to know Ann. This is what made her rejection of the Thieves' activities especially painful for Izuku. She is also implied to have been a Morality Chain for Bakugou, whose behavior worsened after she moved away.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome:
  • Deconstructed as per its source material. Izuku's thoughtless attempts to help a woman in trouble end with him getting on the bad side of a man with connections in the government. The encounter ends with a rigged trial where the drunk walks away scot-free while Izuku is left with a year's probation and a permanent assault charge on his record on top of missing the U.A. Entrance Exam because of said trial. He spends the first part of the story trying to clamp down on his heroic instincts to avoid causing trouble for others, but he still can't help himself. They return with a vengeance after Shiho attempts suicide and motivates him to continue being a phantom thief even after Kamoshida is dealt with. This is a carry over from his home series, where is sense of justice and doing the right thing is so strong that he is fully willing to break the law and brave the consequences if it means saving someone.
    Izuku: [after seeing Ann's distress and watching her run away] I-it’s none of my business… I-I shouldn’t meddle in in things I don’t understand... [steps towards his train] It’s none of my business… I can’t keep causing trouble for Mom... [doors to the train open as he looks back at Ann as she descends the steps] D-Damn it! [runs after her]
  • Later, Izuku and Ryuji confront Kamoshida in his office while promising that the man will pay for his crimes, which only gives him the excuse to prepare to expel both of them for threatening him.
  • Izuku also immediately intervenes when a middle schooler named Kaoru is being bullied by some of his classmates. Izuku was fully prepared to get into a fight with them even though he doesn't have his Metaverse powers to match their Quirks and the risk of violating his probation. Luckily for him, he manages to scare them off through his status as an upperclassman as well as the attention their confrontation created.
• Clark Kent Outfit: Even without All Might to guide him, Izuku ends up getting into a routine of jogging and working out in preparation for the U.A. Entrance Exam, continuing this routine even after the trial. While he looks "fairly average" with his clothes on, he's also described as "quite well built" when seen shirtless or in a tank-top.
• Classical Anti-Hero: Izuku is shy, nervous, easily startled, lonely, ostracized and has little power to change the system as he knows it until he becomes a phantom thief.
• Cowardly Lion: Izuku is still easily frightened and flustered, with everyone taking note of how jumpy he is. It doesn't stop him from rushing into the thick of battle to help others.
  Narration: Even when he was outnumbered by bullies, he would stand his ground and protect the other kids, even if he was crying the entire time. He would take the beating and endure.
• Custom Uniform: His favorite bright red sneakers replace the uniform loafers.
• Cutting the Knot: When the Thieves are ready to cart out Kamoshida's Treasure, Ryuji and Ann are baffled at how to carry out the massive crown, resigning to just working together to lift it. Izuku points out that they could just use their Personas, particularly his own physically inclined Persona, to carry it. Cue mental Facepalms from everyone present.
• Cry into Chest: He has to lean on Makoto as he breaks down after failing to stop Shiho's suicide attempt.
• Dork Knight: Izuku is about as lovably dorky as you can get: A Hero Otaku who Cannot Talk to Women who is also a Socially Awkward Hero who struggles to refer to anyone by their first name because of how informal it is for him. He's also the undisputed leader and overall strongest member of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, who work outside of the law to bring unmistakably evil people to justice.
• Dream-Crushing Handicap: His Quirklessness made his dream of becoming a Hero extremely unlikely at best. It became nigh-impossible once he gained his criminal record.
• Emotional Bruiser: Izuku is the strongest member of the Phantom Thieves overall and also the most prone to Tender Tears. One moment he can be a total badass plowing through Shadows and the next he's bawling over being called a Hero for the first time in his life. This also gets lampshaded by Ryuji.
  Ryuji: [after Izuku saves him from the Shadows] Dude, you're friggin' amazing. You saved us back there and everything and you're still going even though you're dead tired. I know, I can tell since I was in track. [smiles at Izuku] You look like a real Hero!
  Izuku: [bursts into tears, causing Ryuji to recoil] Y-y-you really think so...? [shakes his head and composes himself] S-sorry, got carried away with my emotions... we should get going before more guards arrive.
  Ryuji: I... really can't make heads or tails of your personality...
• Face Fault: Izuku's usual reaction to Morgana's typical "I think..." statements.
• The Farmer and the Viper: The woman Izuku saved ended up testifying against him in court and framed him for assault, leaving Izuku with a criminal record and making him even more of a social pariah than he already was.
• Finger Poke of Doom: Quantico Smash is nothing more than Izuku and Carter flickering the air with their pointer finger, which generates a massive rush of wind and force that plows through anything that isn't resistant to physical attacks.
• Fingore: Izuku's fingers are swollen and bloody after he nearly breaks them while trying to reach a falling Shiho through the safety fence.
• The Fixer: The Thieves trust Izuku to gather medical supplies, pick out weapons from Untouchable, and pawn off the spoils from their heists for extra cash.
• Flaming Hair: Carter has flaming crimson hair, but some art depicts him with golden hair instead.
• Foil:
  • Izuku to Ren. Ren is a Tall, Dark, and Snarky Bishōnen with unshakable confidence as a phantom thief, a tendency to show off, and has Arsène as his Persona. His quiet, meek exterior is an act that he quickly sheds upon entering the Metaverse. Izuku is a far dorkier kid described as "plain-looking", is shorter than his older peers, is a Classical Anti-Hero who suffers from Heroic Self-Deprecation and has Carter as his Persona. His meekness and shyness is definitely not an act and it shows up both in and out of the Metaverse. While they are both intelligent how they use their minds are completely different. Ren is a Guile Hero who can easily outwit his enemies, Izuku is horrible at that but makes up for it by being incredibly analytical.
  • Carter to Arsene. Carter is a porcelain-white Boisterous Bruiser with a Heroic Build, golden hair and a heart to match. He's based on the pulp fiction Action Hero of an American science fiction novel and comic series from the early 1900s. His abilities are based around using brute force, a sword, and the Kou- line of spells to deal Bless damage. He promises to throw off Izuku's chains and let him become the Hero he always wanted to be and speaks with a slight drawl. Though Carter encourages Izuku to more or less save people by force even if they don't want it. By contrast, Arsene is a Anti-Hero Picaresque Gentleman Thief from France dressed almost entirely in black and red with a permanent Cheshire Cat Grin and an unusually slim figure, who is lacking in the Physical department, and specializes in the Ei- line of Curse spells. He promises to grant Ren power even if it means chaining him down to Hell and empowers the thief to perform sacrilegious acts in the name of Ren's own sense of justice. He also speaks in refined, Victorian-era diction.
  • To Bakugou. Izuku is a Born Unlucky Un-Sorcerer Shrinking Violet who wanted to become a Hero solely to help others but circumstances outside of his control kept him from going to the school of his dreams. Bakugou is The Ace, a Born Winner, and a Smug Super who mouths off and attacks anyone he doesn't like and wants to become a Hero to cement his ideal of strength above all and does get into the school Izuku dreamed of attending his whole life.
• Forgiveness: Izuku doesn't hold anything against Mishima for leaking his criminal record and basically ruining his high school debut, since he knows that Mishima was pressured into doing so by Kamoshida.
• For Want Of A Nail:
  • Izuku is never attacked by the Sludge Villain. So he never meets All Might or gains One For All. He also completely missed the entrance exam because of his trial for "assaulting" a drunken man who was molesting a woman, putting Izuku on probation and forcing him to go to Tokyo. His criminal record also means that he will probably never be able to enroll in Hero school or even get employment at a Hero office while making it extremely difficult for him to become a police officer, effectively cutting his dreams short.
  • Makoto is also Izuku's Childhood Friend and one of his closest confidants at Shujin Academy. Because of this, she learns about the Metaverse much earlier than she does in canon when he promises to tell her everything after Kamoshida was brought to justice.
• Friendless Background:
  • Ever since Makoto moved away, none of Izuku's peers were willing to give him the time of day for wanting to be a Hero without a Quirk. This is exacerbated even further by his new criminal record, as people spread horrible rumors about him when he hasn't even done anything to them, nor do they even bother to ask about the circumstances behind his conviction. Even after Kamoshida is dealt with, people continue to speak badly of Izuku and blame him for Kamoshida's change of heart. Luckily for Izuku, he has a new set of Fire-Forged Friends in the form of the Phantom Thieves, who are some of the first people to treat him kindly and like a normal person in a long time.
  • The Confidant Link system in the Velvet Room is a major source of angst for Izuku, because he's worried that his new friendships are artificially constructed for the sake of making his Personas stronger. When he finally tells the other Thieves about it and the Velvet Room, he starts stammering about how he truly values their companionship and that he's not just hanging out with them for the power boost. But Ryuji, Ann, and Morgana wave off his concerns and tell him that they know he's way too sincere to ever think of using them like that. Izuku instantly bursts into Tears of Joy over this.
    Izuku: I… I was afraid at first when these links started forming though. I mean, it's beneficial, but…
    Ryuji: But what's up? Isn't that a good thing?
    Izuku: W-Well I… I don't want you guys to think that's the only reason I'm friends with you. I-I mean, it helps, sure, but that's not why I-
    Ann: Whoa, slow down, Izuku. You don't have to worry about that. You're one of the most sincere people I've ever met. There's no way you'd be faking the funk when it comes to making friends.
    Izuku: Huh?
    Ryuji: Yeah man, you kiddin'? You're way too nice for that kinda crap. [slaps him on the shoulder playfully] If you make friends and those links or whatever, we know you're not doin' it just for some power ups. That just makes 'em cooler!
    Morgana: I agree. We all know what kind of heart you have, Izuku. Don't ever doubt that.
    Izuku: [teary-eyed] Y-You guys… [starts crying Ocular Gushers into his sleeve] Th-thank you~!
• Genius Bruiser:
  • Izuku has the most physically inclined of the Thieves' Personas and is mentioned to have excelled academically in middle school, the latter of which is part of the reason why an elite, stuffy school like Shujin Academy was willing to transfer him in at the last minute despite his record. He's also responsible for solving most of the Palaces' puzzles and takes up the role as The Strategist after being named leader of the Phantom Thieves. Morgana also praises him for being quick on the uptake (at least when compared to Ryuji and Ann) and was impressed by Izuku's revisions to Ryuji's calling card for Kamoshida.
  • He later reveals that he's in several of the advanced placement courses for his year and offers to tutor both Ann and Ryuji in preparation for their final exams, managing to teach them all the material they were supposed to learn in class despite being a year behind them.
• Good Cannot Comprehend Evil: Izuku's close relationship with his mom leaves him struggling to wrap his head around the idea that the teachers and parents of Kamoshida's victims let the abuses slide just to prop up the school's good name and because it puts something on their kids' college applications.
• Good Cop/Bad Cop: He and Ryuji perform this routine while interrogating Kamoshida's victims in hopes of getting one of them to expose the coach. Izuku's meekness and niceness made him the Good Cop while Ryuji's roughness and willingness to cut to the heart of the matter made him the Bad Cop. But this dynamic is undercut by Izuku's record, which made people even more scared of him than the more imposing Ryuji.
• Good Feels Good: Izuku enjoys the very act of helping people and just being a good person in general. This is why he almost never asks for compensation from the people he helps and gets misty-eyed when he sees all of the responses on the Phan-Site that say that the Phantom Thieves brought them hope and inspired them.
• Grin of Audacity: Izuku flashes a smile to rival All Might's upon awakening his Persona in contrast to Ren's Slasher Smile upon forming a contract with Arsène. He also frequently forces smiles when things get rough to try and reassure people around him, though it doesn't always work.
• Hard Work Hardly Works: Even after working his ass off to try and get into U.A. on sheer physical and intellectual merit, it's heavily implied that Izuku still would have never been able to get into U.A. even if he had been able to take the Entrance Exam since the exam heavily favors students with powerful Quirks that are able to destroy things like robots.
• The Heart:
  • Izuku's heroic spirit forms the moral center of the Phantom Thieves here, bringing them together under a single flag and keeping them from going overboard with their heists. While Ryuji and Ann were at least partially motivated out of spite and revenge against Kamoshida, Izuku's was only concerned with stopping Kamoshida from hurting others and giving closure to the people Kamoshida already harmed. Ann even lampshades this while ruminating about her relationship with her fellow Thieves, mentioning her surprise when she learned that the boy with the criminal record had the "biggest heart she had ever seen". Makoto also calls him the sweetest boy she knows and is baffled to learn that he has an assault charge levied against him.
  • Izuku is also very quick to pick up on when others are distressed or in trouble, which factors into his insatiable desire to help others. He quickly notices that Ryuji probably has a history of Kamoshida given the animosity Ryuji has for the latter and gives Ann someone to talk to when he realizes that she is also under Kamoshida's thumb. This is also the reason why he's so hard on himself after Shiho attempts suicide since he's thoroughly convinced that he could have done something if he just noticed sooner even though they barely knew each other.
• The Hero: The protagonist of the story and easily the most straightforwardly heroic of the cast with the strictest morals and a bleeding heart for his fellow man.
• Heroic BSoD: Izuku has a major one after he fails to stop Shiho from attempting suicide. He becomes flat out unresponsive and didn't even realize that he nearly broke his fingers while trying to reach out to save her. He starts feeling a bit better after he learns that Shiho survived, but he still has to cry into Makoto's shoulder afterward and only fully recovers after making up his mind to change Kamoshida's heart.
• Heroic Build: He's leanly muscular and well-built for a kid his age and height due to working out constantly in hopes of becoming a Hero. He was mainly spurred on by Makoto, his Childhood Friend, who shared his dream of becoming a Hero.
• Heroic RRoD: Izuku's Smash techniques can deal tremendous damage but take a considerable amount of his stamina and wracks his body with pain with each use to emulate how some abilities are Cast from Hit Points in the game. It is also a Mythology Gag of the recoil effect Izuku experienced while using One For All in canon. For reference, using Virginia Smash once was enough to leave him barely able to stay up on one knee. Luckily, he doesn't get broken bones from this and a quick Dia from Morgana is usually enough for him to get back on his feet.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Izuku was tempted to pull one as the Thieves started losing to Shadow Kamoshida, only for the others to refuse him. Carter calls him out on this, telling Izuku that he'd just be trampling over his friends' willingness to put their lives on the line for him by doing this.
• Hero with Bad Publicity:
  • Izuku is probably the single nicest person you'll ever meet, but his criminal record means that people jump to conclusions about him without getting to know him or even asking for the context behind the assault charge. Because of this, the Phantom Thieves and Makoto are his only friends. Ann even lampshades this, telling him that he was the exact opposite of what she expected after slowing down and having a one-on-one conversation with him.
    Ann: If it makes you feel better, there's no way I can see you as being as bad as they say you are. If anything, you're almost... the opposite of what I expected after hearing all the rumors.
    Izuku: [sheepish chuckle] Y-Yeah, I've gotten that a few times...
  • When Izuku begins washing the dishes of his own accord, Sojiro has to do a Double Take, since he never expected Izuku to even think about doing anything for him.
  • After Kamoshida confesses, the student body singles Izuku out and blames him for it, saying that he was lying about being Quirkless and actually had a brainwashing Quirk solely because of his criminal record.
  • Rather than admit that he could have just studied to do well on his exams, Izuku's classmates accuse him of stealing the answers to the tests when he's ranked 7th among his first-year class despite being caught up in a whirlwind of chaos as a phantom thief.
• Hero-Worshipper: Izuku still looks up to All Might and the other Heroes even after the reality that he'll never be able to be like them sinks in. Even his Persona, Carter, wears a necklace with All Might's smiling face on it. His experiences in the Metaverse tweak his worldview somewhat. He still admires them deeply, but he has since realized that even the greatest Heroes can't be everywhere to save everyone. Even still, he knows that someone should be able to speak up for the ones the Heroes can't save, even if it means being branded a Vigilante.
• High-Pressure Emotion: When Izuku is feeling particularly embarrassed, his nervous sweat is described as turning into steam.
• Honor Before Reason: Izuku's Chronic Hero Syndrome and ideals of what a Hero should stand for often make him act irrationally even when he knows that he's going against his better judgment and the advice of others. After Shiho attempts suicide, he and Ryuji run over to Kamoshida's office to confront him even though he knows that it will only give Kamoshida more excuses to punish him, simply because he wanted to the real Kamoshida to know that he was coming after him. He also strictly abides by Thou Shalt Not Kill in regards to the Thieves' targets, telling his friends that he will take full legal responsibility if their actions result in Accidental Murder, even if the target is an utterly repulsive human being.
• Horrible Judge of Character: Inverted. Izuku quickly makes friends with the other outcasts at school who are frequently looked down upon, including the Japanese Delinquent Ryuji and the slut-shamed and fiery Ann, but instinctively avoids getting into the same car as Kamoshida even while running late for school in the rain.
• Humble Hero: Izuku still doesn't think of himself as anything special even as his friends shower him with compliments whenever he has a moment of brilliance or does something awesome.
  Ryuji: [after Izuku solves a drawbridge puzzle] Holy crap, that was amazin'! You're pretty damn smart, man!
  Izuku: [flustered and rubbing the back of his head] N-no, it was nothing, really...
• Iconic Outfit: Izuku still wears his red-and-white sneakers everywhere, even with his thief outfit.
• I Coulda Been a Contender!: Izuku feels this way about his decision to try to save that woman, resulting in his criminal record and effectively being permanently barred from pursuing his dream of becoming a Hero. Subverted when he realizes that he doesn't regret what he did even with the ultimate consequences, which allows him to form his contract with Carter. He completely gets over this by Chapter 12 when he realizes that if he had gone to U.A., all of his new friends would still be suffering under Kamoshida's thumb. So while he definitely still misses the lost opportunity, he knows that he wouldn't give up the life he has now just to go to U.A.
• Inelegant Blubbering: Izuku breaks down and lets the tears, snot, and drool fall after he fails to stop Shiho from attempting suicide.
• Innocently Insensitive:
  • Izuku initially refuses to tell Makoto about the Cognitive World or his actions as a phantom thief in order to keep her out of danger, telling her that she's done enough and that he was going to make Kamoshida pay after Shiho jumps off the roof in despair. While he means this with the best of intentions, Makoto, who's Locked Out of the Loop, takes this as saying that he doesn't want her help and feels worthless because of it, even though he really does want her support.
  • Shiho mistakes the look of horror on Izuku's face when she confesses that Kamoshida had been sexually abusing her for disgust, which proves to be the last straw as she leaps from the top of the school to kill herself.
• In Spite of a Nail: Izuku ends up jogging and working out regularly in hopes of passing the U.A. Entrance Exam even without meeting All Might. He gives up after moving to Tokyo and the realization that he'll never be a hero sinks in, but he picks it back up again after becoming a phantom thief. He later becomes Ryuji's running and workout partner. It's later revealed that Izuku got into exercising earlier thanks to Makoto's encouragement and support of his dream of becoming a Hero.
• I Should Have Been Better: Along with It's All My Fault below, Izuku mentally tortures himself by trying to think of all the different ways he could have tried to prevent Shiho from attempting suicide.
• It's All My Fault:
  • Izuku blames himself for letting Shiho jump off the building even as he nearly broke his fingers trying to get to her.
    Izuku: I-I-I... I'm s-s-sorry... I-I... I-I c-couldn't save her...
  • Izuku visits her the day before the Thieves plan their heist to reaffirm how sorry he felt about not saving her. He then goes on to promise that Kamoshida will be judged for his crimes and that he hopes to see her smile again. When Shiho wakes up, she acknowledges his efforts and feels guilty about how terrible she made him feel while speaking with Ann.
    Izuku: I’m so sorry… [tears cascading down his face] I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you! I-I-I should have done more! I should have been faster! I-I keep thinking about what I could have done differently a-and what I said up there! I messed up so badly, I- [choked sobs as he wipes his face with his sleeve] B-but I won’t let that be the end of it… we’re going to make Kamoshida pay for what he’s done. To you, to the track team, to Ann-senpai, to Ryuji-senpai… we’re not going to let him get away with it! I promise you… [takes Shiho's hand into his own] So please… please wake up soon… and smile once this is all over. Okay? [forces himself to smile like All Might as he continues to cry]
• Japanese Politeness: Izuku struggles to use anything other than proper Japanese honorifics to refer to others, constantly stumbling over his own words when Ryuji tells him to just call him by his given name, eventually settling on the only somewhat informal "Ryuji-senpai". He later does the same for Ann, calling her "Ann-senpai", and doesn't make an exception for Morgana, calling him "Morgana-san". The latter even lampshades it, saying that Izuku knows his manners.
• Keeping Secrets Sucks: Izuku feels really bad about hiding his activities from others, which makes him come clean to Ann after she gets sucked into the Metaverse and promises to tell Makoto everything after the issue with Kamoshida is resolved. To his dismay, she vocally disapproves when he admits that he's considering stealing the hearts of other ne'er-do-wells because of the morally questionable nature of the Thieves' actions.
• Keep the Reward: Izuku doesn't expect a reward for anything he does and usually tries to refuse it until other people insist or he absolutely needs it. Sojiro calls him out on this behavior, saying that Izuku should expect some compensation for his deeds or else other people will just exploit his good will until he has nothing left to show for it. He later takes up a part-time job as Tae Takemi's guinea pig in exchange for access to stronger medicine, a small salary, and a discount on said medicines.
  Sojiro: [after Izuku washes the dishes for Sojiro] Of course I won't ask you to do this for free, though I can't rightly pay you...
  Izuku: Don't worry about that, Sakura-san, I-
  Sojiro: Nonsense. You might be well-meaning, kid, but don't let yourself get conned by others into doing stuff for free all the time. People will abuse that kindness until you've rightly run out.
• The Knights Who Say "Squee!": Izuku's enthusiasm for all things Hero-related hasn't dulled in the slightest since he became a phantom thief. His room is still plastered with All Might merchandise and he fawns over Ryuji's model gun when he realizes that it was styled after Snipe's personal revolver.
• The Leader: Even though he's the youngest among them, Izuku's raw capability leads Ann, Morgana, and Ryuji to name Izuku the leader, taking aspects of the Levelheaded (his role as The Strategist and being generally clear-headed), Headstrong (his Chronic Hero Syndrome), and Charismatic (his ability to bring people together through his sheer niceness and his status as a Wild Card) types.
• Light 'em Up: Carter is a Bless-type Persona who uses the Kou- line of skills, to Arsène's Curse-type and usage of the Ei- line.
• Light Is Good: As the embodiment of Izuku's dream of becoming a Hero, the porcelain-skinned, Bless-type Carter is an unambiguously good Boisterous Bruiser who can use the Kou- line of skills and encourages Izuku when he's feeling down. Further emphasized by Carter's rousing summoning speech which states that he will break the chains that hold Izuku down, which stands in contrast to Arsène's promise to provide power even if it ends up chaining Ren to Hell.
  Carter: From the sea of your soul, I come forth! I am the rebel hero of your soul, your power to save others in this foreign land! I am Carter! [flourishes his cape] If you ask, I will give you the power to break forth and save yourself from this mess!
  Izuku: Please, give me the power I need! Carter!
  Carter: Then consider it done, kid! Let's show 'em that you can be a hero!
• Like Brother and Sister: Izuku doesn't seem to have any romantic attraction towards Makoto and treats her more like an older sister or a really close friend. He feels extremely guilty about keeping secrets from her and the two are always looking out for each others' well-being. He flies into a rage when she's captured by a Shiki-Ouji in Madarame's Palace and immediately prepares a Virginia Smash to blast the Shadow apart.
• Luminescent Blush: Izuku has this frequently out of embarrassment, whether he's talking to (or worse, touching) a girl or if Morgana is teasing him by revealing something he'd rather keep hidden.
• Magnetic Hero: Izuku's sheer niceness ends up drawing the Phantom Thieves to him on top of his status as a Wild Card. Then there's the Shadows who become his Personas.
• Major Injury Underreaction: Not nearly as pronounced as in his home series, but Izuku's Heroic BSoD prevents him from reacting to nearly breaking his fingers and leaving them a bloody, scabbed mess when he tried to force them through the fence to reach Shiho in time.
• Megaton Punch: Izuku develops his own Smash techniques in time for the battle with Kamoshida's Shadow. Quantico Smash is his canon counterpart's Delaware Smash in all but name, with Carter firing a powerful shockwave with a finger flick. He ups the ante to Virginia Smash for the finishing blow after Morgana left the Shadow open to attack, charging Carter's fist with blinding light before driving it into Kamoshida's stomach, sending him flying and completely destroying the staircase the Shadow crashed into and leaving a massive crater in its wake. These attacks are also Dangerous Forbidden Techniques, leaving Izuku wracked with pain and exhaustion, but without any broken bones like his One For All-using counterpart, allowing Morgana to use Dia to heal him enough to move after the fight was over.
• Mistaken for Suicidal: While examining his new room, Izuku pulls up a chair to see if a ceiling beam would be sturdy enough to use as a pull-up bar. Sojiro then walks in to find Izuku suspended off the ground with a chair under his feet.
  Sojiro: Holy shit, kid... You're not trying to...
• Momma's Boy: Even his criminal conviction doesn't change the relationship Izuku shares with his mom. She's anguished when she's forced to have him move away and he doesn't blame her for his situation at all. The first thing they do when seeing each other over Golden Week is to hug each other tightly with tears in their eyes. This is what makes Futaba jealous, since this is exactly the kind of relationship she had with her own mom.
• Monochromatic Eyes: Carter's eyes have no irises or pupils, leaving just the white sclera.
• Movie Superheroes Wear Black: Izuku's phantom thief outfit is a black and red version of the second version of his canon costume with the addition of Ren's Badass Longcoat and All Might-like attachments to his mask.
• Muscles Are Meaningful: Carter's rippling muscles grants him great physical strength relative to the slimmer Personas of the other Thieves, culminating in Izuku creating his own Smash techniques that deal tremendous damage at the cost of great pain and a huge drain on his stamina.
• Must Have Caffeine: Izuku has taken to drinking black coffee, which has become easily accessible now that he lives in a cafe, every morning as part of his training regimen. Sojiro is surprised at this, asking if Izuku was trying to impress him.
• My God, What Have I Done?: He's horrified when Kamoshida offers to kill himself as atonement for his crimes. For Izuku, this would be no better than murdering Kamoshida himself.
• Mythology Gag:
  • The Cast from Hit Points nature of Carter's Smash attacks is one to the heavy recoil Izuku suffered with One For All in canon, as well as the fact that Physical skills tend to require a percentage of HP in the Persona series.
  • During the final fight with Kamoshida's Shadow, Izuku recites the same lines he spoke to Muscular in canon while going full throttle with One For All.
    Izuku: Being a hero has nothing to do with whether you can do something or not... It's a hero's job to put their life on the line, and act up to their words!
• Nervous Wreck: Izuku remains easily flustered and extremely apologetic even after coming to know the Thieves. His peers all call him a "jumpy guy" and he frequently breaks into nervous sweats and blushing.
• Net Gun: Izuku gets a capture gun from Mei that's able to cover nearly reasonably-sized target(s) with a net and bind them together. This proves essential in the battle against Shadow Madarame, as it ties him up long enough for Makoto to shower them with black paint.
• Nice Guy: Even after everything that's happened to him, Izuku refuses to let it affect how he treats others and continues to be an extremely kind and empathetic young man. He doesn't judge Ryuji for his appearance, is quick to help Morgana out of his cage, and gives Ann someone to talk to about her troubles with Kamoshida. This works against him while attempting a Hold Up, since he's decidedly non-threatening compared to his teammates. It does make Pixie join him and neither she nor Bicorn hold it against him when he selects them for fusion and thus execution. She even lampshades the fact.
  Pixie: I guess you're the type who tries to be nice to everyone, huh?
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished:
  • Two-fold here. On top of the social stigma that comes with having a criminal record, Izuku is burdened with the fact that he'll never be able to enroll at a Hero school or find a job at a Hero Office with that assault label on his record. He also acknowledges that it will be even more of an uphill battle to even follow his backup plan to become a police officer. Both realizations bring him to tears on multiple occasions.
    Izuku: [wistfully] The consequences of meddling, huh?
  • After Izuku and the rest of the Thieves save dozens of students from Kamoshida's abuse, his reputation simply gets worse as the student body immediately pins the whole ordeal on him and spreads rumors that he's hiding a brainwashing Quirk.
• No-Sell: Carter is immune to Bless attacks and resistant to Curse attacks. Later on, Carter's own Bless attacks get No Selled by a Shadow in Kamoshida's Palace and another one in Madarame's Palace.
• Ocular Gushers: Just like in canon, Izuku's eyes can shoot out rivers of tears in an instant when he's feeling emotional.
• Odd Friendship: With Ryuji. The two are polar opposites in nearly every conceivable way aside from their status as social pariahs and the fact that they were denied the chance at their dreams. Izuku is an intelligent, plain-looking, soft-spoken Hero fanboy while Ryuji is a loud, foul-mouthed Japanese Delinquent who dyes his hair blonde and frequently breaks the school dress code. Despite this, their shared desired to do good and experiences in the Metaverse have made them inseparable. Makoto even lampshades this, saying that Izuku has always had a tendency to make "energetic" friends after remembering his "friendship" with Bakugou.
• Off Screen Moment Of Awesome: It's implied that Izuku and Bakugo had a fight before the latter joined the Phantom Thieves, and he won, proving his leadership capabilities to the other teen.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: The amount of times Izuku has gotten genuinely angry can be counted on one hand alone. Chapter 40 has him far angrier than usual. His anger is understandable, given that he and the Thieves just learned how the Quirk Erasing Bullets are made.
• Otaku: Izuku still loves Heroes more than anything, especially All Might, even after being denied the chance to become like his idol time and again. His room is plastered from wall-to-wall with All Might's merchandise and his mask is styled to resemble All Might's trademark hairstyle. He's embarrassed by the last part in particular, which Morgana is happy to tease him for.
• Oxymoronic Being: Izuku's status as a phantom thief is discussed as this. Heroes are widely popular, recognized, and accepted in society for upholding the law. So the idea that his dream to become a Hero was the catalyst he needed to become a phantom thief who continuously subverts the law in pursuit of his own sense of justice seems contradictory. But it's explained that it's his desire to become a Hero in spite of everything that says he can't is what makes the dream rebellious enough to make his Persona manifest.
• Perpetual Smiler: Carter never has anything less than a Grin of Audacity on his face. Even when he's asking Izuku if a particular course of action is wise or not, that grin stays and only widens after he hears Izuku's response.
• Personality Powers: The reason for Izuku's contract with Carter instead of Arsène. While Ren was a quiet boy who secretly wanted to rebel and lash out at the society who constantly mistreats him, Izuku's desire to become a hero for the sake of doing good causes his Persona to be completely different from Ren's, being Arsène's polar opposite in nearly every way. It's also heavily implied that Carter is built around Izuku's image of the Ideal Hero: All Might, given the similarities between All Might's and Carter's Heroic Builds, unwavering heroism, tendency to call Izuku "my boy", and incredible physical strength. Justified by the fact that Personas are just facets of their wielder's personalities. All of his signature attacks involve imitating All Might's Smash attacks as another reminder of how much of a Fan Boy Izuku is.
• Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Izuku is the holder of the Fool Arcana but is only a first-year high school student versus his teammates' status as second- and third-year students. As a result, he's shorter than most of them (but is still MUCH taller than Morgana). He's also acknowledged as the most capable and powerful member of the Thieves overall.
• Positive Friend Influence: Just like in his home series, Izuku is great at bringing out the best in others. For instance, instead of chastising Ann for putting herself in danger and slowing the thieves down after she awakened her Persona, Ryuji instead manages to focus on escaping alive and leaves his petty grievances for later.
• Poster-Gallery Bedroom:
  • After his second trip into the Metaverse, Izuku decides to put up all of his personal things from home in his new room, which ends up plastering the walls with All Might posters and filling up the desks and shelves with All Might figurines, action figures, and other merchandise. It gets lampshaded by both Morgana and Sojiro, much to Izuku's embarrassment.
    Sojiro: [coming upstairs after hearing Morgana's meowing] Hey, I knew I heard a meow. Did you- [looks at all of Izuku's posters and merchandise] Holy crap, kid. I knew you were a fan, but damn...
    Morgana: Right?
  • Morgana tries to bring it up later to embarrass Izuku, only for Izuku to clamp his hands over Morgana's mouth and Change the Uncomfortable Subject.
• Power Glows: Carter's fist shines with blinding light as he throws out Virginia Smash.
• Protagonist Power-Up Privileges: As the one chosen to wield the power of the Wild Card, he is the only member of the Phantom Thieves who is able to use multiple Personas.
• The Power of Friendship: Literally. Due to his nature as a Wild Card, the power and variety of his Personas are related to the strength of his heart, which can only be strengthened by forging bonds with others.
• Rage Breaking Point: Izuku and Ryuji storm off to confront Kamoshida after Shiho attempts suicide even though he knows that it wouldn't do anything for him. While Izuku seems like the more reasonable of the two, he explodes at Kamoshida as he continued to taunt them over Shiho's suicide attempt.
  Izuku: [gives Kamoshida a Death Glare] I was saying... that you’re not going to get away with this. [trembles with rage as he releases Ryuji] You’ve hurt too many people and caused Suzui-senpai to try to kill herself. You... you’re not the king of this school, Kamoshida! [raises his voice and points at Kamoshida] The students aren’t yours to rule over! You will be stopped! Because no matter what, there will always be Heroes around to put an end to your crimes! And they won’t stop until all of your victims have been saved!
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Izuku is the more demure Blue Oni to Ryuji's Red.
• Revolvers Are Just Better: Izuku gets a model gun designed to resemble Snipe's custom-made revolvers from Ryuji. It works like the real thing while in the Cognitive World.
• Righteous Rabbit: The Shadows mistake the parts of Izuku's mask shaped like All Might's hair for rabbit ears, causing an imp to refer to him as "bunny ears" as everyone else begins to take notice.
• Rousing Speech: Carter gives one to Izuku as he seals their contract.
  Carter: [booming, echoing voice] Come on, kid. You gon' give up that easily?
  Izuku: Wh-what?
  Carter: You proved yer resolve when you jumped to save the blond. Even now, I can feel that you never regretted yer choice in savin' that woman, either. Actin' and doin' right without thinkin'... that's what it means to be a Hero, right? And yet, society's tellin' you that you're a criminal. A piece of scum for havin' the guts to do right by yer fellow man... what do you think? Do you really want to be a Hero? Or was that all just some act? Would you take back what you did? Would you?!
  Izuku: [internally as he grinds his teeth in frustration] Would I take back what I did? No! S-she called for help! There was no way I would ever ignore that! Not then, and not now!
  Carter: Well said, my boy! We are in agreement! Now then, let's seal our contract with a vow! I am thou... thou art I... I shall grant you the power to enact justice on this world! [Izuku grips his head in pain] Never regret! Never surrender! Never doubt! If society chains you for being a hero... then rip those chains off and save them, whether they want you to or not!
• Rule of Empathy: Izuku is arguably an even bigger case of this than his canon counterpart, being ostracized for not only being one of the only Quirkless kids around but also for being legally a criminal despite his long-held desire to save others as a Hero. The narration outright states that Izuku is surprisingly good at getting others to sympathize with him unintentionally.
• Samaritan Syndrome:
  • Izuku is initially hesitant to steal the treasure of Kamoshida's heart because of his reservations about the morality of Brainwashing for the Greater Good and is terrified of the thought of killing the man by accident. He changes his tune after Shiho attempts to leap to her death, though he still insists on Thou Shalt Not Kill and plans to turn himself and shoulder all the blame for Kamoshida's murder if they accidentally kill him because he feels that he'll be no better than a Villain if he doesn't.
  • It pops up again when Izuku tells Makoto the truth and they get into an argument over the ethics of the situation and what might happen if he's ever caught. He knows it's wrong and he never wanted to operate this way, but if there are people suffering that he can help and other Heroes can't, he's willing to take the risk of being branded a Vigilante or a Villain and being put in prison.
    Izuku: Because even if Heroes save people, they can't save everyone! Especially those who are suffering in silence! We… what we did… we helped so many students from having to keep suffering. Suzui-senpai was able to get the justice she deserved. But seeing how many students were suffering and nothing was being done about it... it makes me wonder how many more are suffering like that. How many people are at the mercy of egomaniacs like Kamoshida? There are people who are afraid to speak up, or even when they do they're silenced... I... I didn't want to be a Hero who operated like this, but... but if we can help more people who are suffering like that, then I want to keep fighting. Even if the world calls us Villains or Vigilantes, I'm... I'm okay with it.
• Say My Name: Izuku calls out to Shiho as she jumps off the roof of the school.
  Izuku: SUZUI-SENPAI!
• Shrinking Violet: Izuku is just as sweet but also rather shy. It takes him a while to open up to others unless Heroes are involved. Even then, he's usually just reservedly cheerful compared to his much more lively friends. His reputation as someone with an assault charge against him also takes everyone who meets him by surprise, which is lampshaded by everyone he meets.
  Izuku: [bowing respectfully] I-I'm sorry to burden you, Kawakami-sensei. Please take care of me.
  Kawakami: Are you... sure this is the kid with a criminal record? He looks like he could barely hurt a fly.
• Skyward Scream: Izuku screams in anguish after he fails to stop Shiho from attempting suicide and can only watch helplessly as she falls from the roof of Shujin Academy.
• Socially Awkward Hero: Izuku's criminal record underscores this, since he can barely speak with anyone without them judging him for having an assault charge on his record even as he tries to treat everyone around him nicely. His tendency to stutter (even when texting) makes him far less threatening when attempting to negotiate with Shadows. At the same time, his status as the Wild Card means that he also has to be The Social Expert to make the most of his abilities. Naturally, Hilarity Ensues.
• Strong Family Resemblance: Izuku is described as the spitting image of his mother. The two share the same eye shape, facial structure, hair and eye color. They're also both timid, emotional and kind-hearted people who are prone to Ocular Gushers.
• Sweat Drop: Izuku has these frequently and sweats profusely whenever he's nervous. Notably, the author actually uses this trope as a verb, which gets edited out in later editions of the story after vocal fan annoyance.
• Taking the Bullet: While battling Kamoshida's Shadow, Izuku shoves Ryuji out of the way of an oncoming barrage of volleyballs, stunning and knocking the wind out of Izuku until Ryuji pulls him behind cover. The older Thief then reminds Izuku not to make any "Heroic Sacrifices".
• Tender Tears: Izuku is frequently crying both tears of regret and tears of joy, though he always tries to wipe them away. He gets this from his mom, who also cries Ocular Gushers when they reunite over Golden Week. In one flashback, he's sobbing over learning that he's Quirkless. Makoto comforts him by saying that he needs no one's approval but his own and that he should try to become one anyways. The sheer amount of joy and gratitude he feels over this makes him cry even harder.
• That Came Out Wrong: Shonen series protagonist or not, a Socially Awkward Hero like Izuku isn't going to know what to say when a girl he knows and cares about is on the verge of committing suicide. One wrong expression is all it takes to push her over the edge.
• Theme Naming: Izuku names his Smash techniques, Quantico Smash^note Referring to the name of the U.S. Navy's headquarters and Virginia Smash, in the same vein as the signature moves of his lifelong idol, All Might. It also references the fact that John Carter was a Virginian soldier.
• The Team Normal: Izuku is only Quirkless member of the Phantom Thieves (aside from Morgana, who may or may not be human), but subverted in that he's probably the most special of the Phantom Thieves as the Wild Card.
• Thinking Tic: He mumbles and taps his right index finger against his chin when he's thinking hard.
• Thou Shalt Not Kill: No matter how vile the target is, Izuku refuses to do anything that could potentially result in Accidental Murder, causing him to hesitate when given the option to perform Brainwashing for the Greater Good out of fear of killing Kamoshida. Even Shadows aren't totally exempt from Izuku's no-kill rule, since he's happy to let Shadows he can negotiate with go if they don't have any money or items to provide and are no longer a threat and frequently tries to recruit them as Personas after learning that he has the ability to do so. He has to beg Ann not to throw Kamoshida off his own Palace.
• Threat Backfire: Izuku's lack of confidence and sheer niceness means that most Shadows are hardly impressed with his attempts to perform a Hold Up until Ryuji and Morgana step in to pick up the slack.
  Izuku: [threatening Pixie] A-Alright! G-Give me whatever you have! Money or items... please...?
  Pixie: [all fear of death gone] ...Was that really the best you could do?
  Morgana: We really need to work on your execution, Hero...
• Took a Level in Cynic: After continually telling himself that there had to be a way for him to become a Hero, Izuku finally breaks down after his second night at Leblanc as he realized that there was no way he could become a Pro Hero now that he's Quirkless and a criminal. Luckily for him, his experiences in the Metaverse have given him a chance to help others again, restoring his cheer and hope for the future. That said, his time at Shujin makes his worldview more cynical and grittier as he realizes that the Heroes he's looked up to all his life haven't solved all of society's ills when he sees that Kamoshida gets to abuse his students with impunity. This is what motivates him to take matters into his own hands and right the wrongs that Heroes miss or can't intervene in without losing his faith in Heroes like All Might.
• Trademark Favorite Food: Katsudon, or fried pork cutlet over rice. Inko invokes this by offering to go out to a katsudon joint when they meet up over Golden Week.
• Tragic Dream: Izuku continues to cling to his dream of becoming a Hero even when he knows that it's impossible for him now thanks to being Quirkless AND a criminal. It's because of this dream that he decides to continue being a phantom thief. Even if becoming a Hero is an impossibility and he's branded a Villain for his actions, he doesn't care as long as he gets to help others.
  Izuku: [standing in front of U.A.] I… I wonder if I ever had a chance of getting in to begin with.
• Trauma Conga Line: To say that the cards are stacked against Izuku is a gross Understatement. Even before the events of the story, he's had his dreams stomped on by all of his peers and made a friendless laughingstock for wanting to be a Hero without a Quirk. Then he's charged and convicted with assault for trying to save a woman who was being sexually assaulted, putting him on probation in Tokyo and forcing him to live away from his mother, the one stable, good influence in his life. The trial itself also prevents him from taking the U.A. Entrance Exam, completely dashing his hopes of getting into the one school he's dreamed of attending his entire life. Then it sinks in that he'll never be able to become a Hero because of his new criminal record even after his probation is over. Then he gets sucked into Kamoshida's Palace and barely escapes with his life. After that he learns that his criminal record was leaked before he even arrived at school, causing virtually the entire student body to vilify and spread rumors about him out of fear. And this is just the first five chapters.
• Un-Sorcerer: Izuku is one of the small fraction of people on Earth to be born Quirkless, meaning that he has no naturally-occurring superpowers. This proves to be his Dream-Crushing Handicap, as he would have never made it into U.A.'s Hero Course without one even if he did manage to take the Entrance Exam.
• Unwitting Test Subject: Downplayed. Even though he agrees to test Takemi's medicines for him in exchange for the pay of a part-time job and discounts on her medicines, Izuku generally has no idea what the things he's testing will do to him, nor does he know what the testing is for.
• Verbal Backspace: In Chapter 7, he wonders how Kamoshida's victims could refuse to speak up for themselves after being abused so badly. He then remembers how he was bullied himself as a child and immediately takes his statement back.
• Walking Shirtless Scene: Carter, as per the source material, amply showing off his rippling muscles.
• Weapon-Based Characterization: In contrast to Ren Amamiya's status as a knife nut, Izuku gets a staff to use alongside a revolver sidearm, reflecting his Thou Shalt Not Kill ideology. But his Persona, Carter, is very much a case of Heroes Prefer Swords.
• With Friends Like These...: Izuku doesn't seem to hold anything against Bakugou despite their storied past. He still calls him "Kacchan" and genuinely hopes that Bakugou will become the Number One Hero.
• Young and in Charge: Izuku is a first-year student and the leader of the Phantom Thieves even though his fellow thieves (besides perhaps Morgana) are a year above him. Downplayed in that he was the first among them to awaken his Persona, giving him a sort of seniority over the others.
• Youthful Freckles: A trademark of his character design that hasn't changed in this story.

Ryuji Sakamoto / "Skull"

Ryuji Sakamoto / Skull

Arcana: VII. Le Chariot (The Chariot)

Persona: Captain Kidd

Weapons: Bludgeons and Shotguns

Quirk: Spark Speed

Captain Kidd: "Since your name has been disgraced already, why not hoist the flag and wreak havoc...? The other you who exists within desires it thus... [...] There is no turning back! The skull of rebellion is your flag henceforth!"

^{Click here to see Skull} 

^{Click here to see Captain Kidd} 

Izuku's first real friend at Shujin Academy. He is a Japanese Delinquent and a former member of the school track team before its disbandment. Although he's often vulgar and tactless, he is a kind soul at heart and will risk life and limb for those willing to stand by him.

His Quirk lets him store up electrical energy within his kneecaps from running. He can then use that energy to run for short bursts of Super-Speed.

His Persona is Captain Kidd, a real-life Scottish sailor from the 17th and 18th centuries. He was arrested, tried, and executed in Boston for five counts of piracy and one count of murder after years of sailing the seas despite the complete lack of evidence to support these claims. He represents the Chariot Arcana.

---

• Abusive Parents: It's heavily implied that Ryuji's father beat him and Ryuji's mother before walking out on them.
• Adaptational Badass: Downplayed. He has a pretty strong Quirk, being able to use explosive bursts of Super-Speed with the electricity charged in his kneecaps from running. However, due to his Career-Ending Injury, it isn't nearly as powerful as it once was and he can only use it for brief periods before his knee gives out.
• Animal Motif: Ryuji's tendency to cause trouble even without meaning to and the exaggerated canines on his mask bring monkeys to mind. The library in Kamoshida's Palace even refers to Ryuji as a "Vulgar Ape".
• Arm Cannon: Captain Kidd has this in place of his right hand that shoots lightning in place of cannonballs.
• Batter Up!: He uses his blunt weapons this way, slamming a Bicorn in the head as if he were aiming at a baseball.
• Battle Cry: "Get wrecked!" and "Blast them away, Captain Kidd!"
• Because You Were Nice to Me: After being made a social pariah by Kamoshida's manipulations, Ryuji becomes fast friends with Izuku after they both risk their lives for each other in Kamoshida's Palace and for being the first to treat him with any kindness in a long time. The feeling is mutual as Izuku was also the target of mockery and scorn for almost as long as he can remember and is touched by the fact that Ryuji sticks by him despite the rumors and his reputation.
• Berserk Button: He cannot stand the idea of adults abusing children and teenagers because of his own experiences with Kamoshida, immediately flying into a rage whenever he hears about it.
  • He also hates being compared to his abusive father and is only able to stop himself from brawling with his former friends on the track team because Izuku was there to calm him down.
• Big Brother Instinct: While it's clear that he sees Izuku as an equal, Ryuji can't help but feel offended when Izuku is the target of scorn and goes out of his way to defend his junior, to the point that he's willing to slug it out with the former track team over it.
  Nakaoka: Wait a sec, he's the transfer student… [sneers] No wonder you're hanging out with Sakamoto. I heard you were pretty violent yourself. Though you don't really look like it.
  Ryuji: Hey, that's enough. [takes a step in front of Izuku] You guys can talk all the shit you want to me. I deserve it. But don't go talkin' shit about my pal here. He ain't done nothin' to deserve that.
• Book Dumb: Ryuji can be crafty and resourceful when the time calls for it, but his grades are abysmal and even Izuku's tutoring can't get him through his final exams before summer vacation. Morgana loves to poke and prod him about this, calling him "dumb Ryuji".
• Brains and Brawn: The Brawn to Izuku's Brains. He defers to Izuku most of the time due to his intelligence but is quick to stand up when Izuku is more reluctant and prefers physical and direct solutions. On the other hand, Izuku's Persona, Carter, is even more powerful in close range than Captain Kidd, making this a Zig-zagged trope.
• Butt-Monkey: Not quite as frequently as Izuku, but Ryuji is still the target of Ann's and Morgana's jabs.
• Captain Morgan Pose: Captain Kidd stands on his ship at an angle, producing this pose.
• Career-Ending Injury: Ryuji's leg was broken by Kamoshida, giving him a limp and a bad knee that prevents him from sprinting for an extended time. Since his Quirk requires him to charge electricity in his kneecaps, the power of his Quirk was effectively halved.
• Change the Uncomfortable Subject: He clears his throat and hurriedly tries to change the subject after Ann admits that her decision to spare Kamoshida was a case of Cruel Mercy to submit the sadistic teacher to a Fate Worse than Death.
• Dem Bones: Ryuji's mask is shaped like a skull and Captain Kidd is a skeletal pirate.
• Disappeared Dad: Ryuji's dad walked out on him and his mom and was implied to have been abusive before this.
• Dumb Muscle: He admits that he isn't smart, which is why he defers leadership to Izuku but is happy to fight on the front lines alongside his friends.
• Energy Absorption: Ryuji's Quirk converts kinetic energy into electricity stored in his kneecaps, which he can then spend for Super-Speed. To his delight, he discovered he can absorb electricity from Captain Kidd's Zio spells to instantly recharge his Quirk, giving him the ability to Speed Blitz.
• Face of a Thug: He has the looks and outward demeanor of a typical Japanese Delinquent, but he's an extremely forgiving Nice Guy once you get to know him, sticking up for Izuku whenever possible after their first visit to the Metaverse.
• Foil: He's one for Bakugou. Both of them are foul-mouthed blonds who are talented in their respective fields (Track for Ryuji and pretty much everything for Bakugou). But Ryuji is a Book Dumb Nice Guy who was ostracized by his peers after an impulsive decision led to the loss of most of his running ability and cut the power of his Quirk in half. Bakugou is a Jerkass Born Winner who received nothing but praise and envy from others for his overwhelming talent, getting into the most prestigious Hero school in Japan on his raw power and intelligence. While Ryuji dyes his hair blonde, Bakugou's is natural.
• Ghost Pirate: His Persona, Captain Kidd, has this as his motif, being a skeletal pirate riding atop a floating ship.
• Good Cop/Bad Cop: He's the Bad Cop (the straightforward, blunt interrogator) to Izuku's Good Cop (sympathetic and soft-spoken) when asking around to try and get one of Kamoshida's victims to speak up about their abuser's crimes. Unfortunately, they have no such luck, and Izuku's status as the Good Cop is undercut by the fear induced by his criminal record. Ryuji even lampshades this trope to Izuku, arguing that people would not take them seriously if they weren't direct enough.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Ryuji's hair is dyed blond, but he still counts, being incredibly loyal and kind to those willing to stick around him.
• Handicapped Badass: His running ability is limited due to the lingering effects of his broken leg, which has also halved the power of his Quirk. Despite this, he remains an integral member of the team.
• Hell-Bent for Leather: His thief gear consists primarily of a black, leather jacket and tight dark slacks along with kneepads.
• Improvised Weapon: His first melee weapon is a metal pipe that appeared when he first manifests his Persona.
• Innocently Insensitive: Ryuji learns about Izuku's criminal record shortly after they escape the Metaverse for the first time. The older teen first tries to spin it as making Izuku sound cooler, but he quickly backpedals when he realizes that he's only making things worse.
  Ryuji: [referring to Izuku's relationship with Makoto] I just thought it was funny. She's such a prim and proper kinda chick, and you're the kid with the criminal record, right?
  Izuku: [internally] I shouldn't be surprised he knows, too... everyone seems to know. [grips his hand in frustration, out loud] S-so the whole school knows now, huh?
  Ryuji: I'm sorry, man. I didn't mean to get you down like that. I-If it helps, I kinda thought it makes you look cooler? [chuckles weakly before sighing] Sorry about that...
• Lightning Bruiser: Downplayed. Even after his injury, he's a former track star who can easily outpace Izuku despite being years out of practice, but his limp and bad knee limit his long-term mobility. His Quirk also lets him run at high speed for short bursts and he's one of the most physically inclined members of the Phantom Thieves. Bonus points for actually utilizing electricity and having a Persona that specializes in Zio spells.
• Momma's Boy: Because his father walked out on him, Ryuji is very close to his mom and got into track in hopes of getting into a good college on a scholarship.
• Odd Friendship: With Izuku. The two are polar opposites in nearly every conceivable way aside from their status as social pariahs and the fact that they were denied the chance at their dreams. Izuku is an intelligent, plain-looking, soft-spoken Hero fanboy while Ryuji is a loud, foul-mouthed Japanese Delinquent who dyes his hair blonde and frequently breaks the school dress code. Despite this, their shared desire to do good and experiences in the Metaverse has made them inseparable. Makoto even lampshades this, saying that Izuku has always tended to make "energetic" friends after remembering his "friendship" with Bakugou.
• Real Men Eat Meat: He goes through a massive quantity of meat at the hotel buffet and eggs Izuku to try some too. It ends up backfiring when all the grease in the meat ends up making Ryuji sick.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Ryuji is the Red Oni to Izuku's Blue, being the more hot-headed, callous, and uncouth of the two.
• Scarf of Asskicking: Wears a red muffler tied into an ascot while acting as a phantom thief.
• Ship Tease: While Izuku and Morgana are out procuring supplies, Ryuji gets plenty of alone time with Ann where they banter and become closer friends. Morgana is acutely aware of this and is worried that he won't be able to return to human form before Ann falls for Ryuji.
  • Izuku and Yusuke poke him about his relationship with Ann in Chapter 32. Ryuji internally admits he's never thought about it.
• Shotguns Are Just Better: His firearm of choice.
• Shock and Awe: His Persona, Captain Kidd, specializes in the use of the Zio line of skills, which rain down lightning bolts. In addition to this, his Quirk allows him to charge up electricity in his kneecaps like a turbine by running around, which he can then release for a short burst of increased speed. However, the effective power of this Quirk was cut in half after his leg was broken, which is only worsened by his limp.
• Sir Swears-a-Lot: He's quite vulgar and aside from his use of "effin'" instead of "fucking", he uses much more colorful vocabulary in casual conversation than the other Thieves. Izuku also has to make extensive edits to their first calling card to make it sound more eloquent and less like the immature rant it is in canon.
• Skeleton Motif: His Code Name is Skull, his mask is shaped like a human or monkey skull, and his Persona is a skeletal pirate.
• Super-Speed: As mentioned under Shock and Awe, Ryuji's Quirk allows him to run super fast for brief periods after storing up electricity behind his kneecaps while running. Unfortunately, the power of this Quirk was effectively halved by his broken leg and only weakened further by his limp. While he can still use short bursts, he can't sprint for long periods like he used to.
• Toxic Friend Influence: Subverted. Makoto is worried that Ryuji's delinquent habits, like skipping school, dying his hair, and complete distaste for schoolwork will rub off on Izuku. Kawakami also advises Izuku to avoid hanging around Ryuji for the same reasons. But Ryuji is an incredibly kind and compassionate person whose energy and loudness complements Izuku's more reserved thoughtfulness. If anything, Izuku is a positive influence on Ryuji, who starts coming to school regularly because of him.
• Vitriolic Best Buds:
  • With Morgana and Ann. They'll make jabs and snipes at each other all day long, but they're still the best of friends and trust each other with their lives.
  • When Morgana is spotted on a train by a young boy, Ryuji decides to demonstrate that Morgana is a toy by Button Mashing his head.
• The Watson: Since Izuku isn't a Silent Protagonist, Ryuji takes up this role as Izuku and Morgana explain things to him, which has the side effect of making him seem somewhat duller than he already is in canon.

Morgana / "Mona"

Arcana: I. Le Bateleur (The Magician)

Persona: Zorro

Weapons: Curved Swords and Slingshots

Quirk: Unknown

^{Click here to see Morgana's housecat form} 

^{Click here to see Zorro} 

A strange cat-like creature Izuku and Ryuji encounter during their first trip into the Metaverse, Morgana has no knowledge of his past but a wealth of it on the nature of Shadows and the Metaverse. Because of this, he helps found the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, acting as an important adviser who teaches the gang about the ins-and-outs of both Phantom Thievery and the Cognitive World.

His Persona is Zorro, a pulp fiction hero from the early 20th century. He represents the Magician Arcana.

---

• A Boy and His X: He takes up the role of Izuku's pet cat in reality in order to meet up with the other Phantom Thieves as needed, being transformed into the shape of a regular housecat in the process. Morgana constantly tags along wherever Izuku goes and the two are nearly inseparable.
• Accessory-Wearing Cartoon Animal: He wears a muffler and utility belt while in the Metaverse.
• Ambiguous Gender: Despite referring to himself in masculine pronouns in Japanese (with the archaic "wagahai") and insisting he's a guy, both his real name and his Code Name are explicitly feminine. Also, his voice is described as "boyish" in the original game.
• Amnesiac Hero: Aside from his unusually in-depth knowledge of the Metaverse and its mechanics, Morgana is a complete amnesiac. His motivation for being a thief is to recover his lost memories and hopefully regain human form.
• Antiquated Linguistics: He refers to Ann as "Lady Ann" and uses antiquated pronouns in Japanese.
• Armor-Piercing Question: Gives one to Izuku to get him to overcome his indecisiveness over how to deal with Kamoshida.
  Izuku: But… is changing his heart really okay?
  Morgana: Are his distorted desires more important than the suffering of the students he’s torturing?
• Badasses Wear Bandanas: Wears a yellow one around his neck and a black one on his face in the Metaverse. This is further reinforced by his Persona, Zorro, who is famous for wearing these as a Cool Mask.
• Become a Real Boy: His end-goal is to become a human and woo Ann.
• Berserk Button: He hates being called a cat. Ryuji presses this button repeatedly in their petty arguments.
• Blow You Away: Morgana and Zorro can use the Garu skills, generating whirlwinds to damage their foes.
• Calling Card: Morgana reveals that this is a requirement to get the Treasure to manifest, as it forces the Palace Ruler to subconsciously pump up their defenses.
• Cats Are Mean: Morgana can be rather pushy and mean, especially to Ryuji, whom he scolds over things that he wouldn't bother the other Phantom Thieves for.
• Classy Cat-Burglar: Morgana is male, but he's the most driven, professional, and skilled of the Phantom Thieves at first, with many more cat puns than his similarly cat-themed crush, Ann.
• Combat Medic: He's in charge of patching everyone up with Dia when things get rough and can put out respectable amounts of damage with his Garu spells.
• Combination Attack: Izuku will often order Morgana to fan the flames produced by Carmen's Agi spell.
• Crazy Jealous Guy: Morgana gets extremely jealous whenever someone seems to be wooing Ann, glaring daggers at Ryuji whenever he gets alone time with her and declaring Yusuke to be extremely suspicious for wanting Ann to pose for a painting. At the very least, he manages to avoid the most extreme versions of this trope.
• Double Standard: Morgana treats Izuku and Ryuji like morons for being unable to wrap their heads around the Metaverse's mechanics at first, but is soft and understanding when Ann is understandably confused herself. Izuku is decidedly nonplussed at this blatant bias.
• Fragile Speedster: Despite his stubby-looking legs Morgana is fast enough to easily outpace an experienced sprinter like Ryuji and is good with a sword. But Morgana's size doesn't let him take hits well and his attempt at Taking the Bullet for Ann leaves them both injured.
• Funny Animal: In his humanoid form, he puts on clothes like a bandanna and a utility belt, stands on two feet, and exhibits other non-animal behaviors.
• The Gadfly: After learning about Izuku's Hero obsession, Morgana is quick to tease the boy about it to the latter's embarrassment. He later pokes fun at Izuku calling Mount Lady "sexy" in "Hero Analysis for the Future No. 13".
• Gender-Blender Name: Morgana and Mona are both female names, but Morgana explicitly identifies as male.
• Gold Fever: He goes gaga over the Treasures in Palaces, flinging himself at them as if they were catnip. He does the same for treasure demons. Doubles as My Significance Sense Is Tingling, as he doesn't act this way towards normal treasure.
• Healer Signs On Early: Morgana is the first friendly face that Izuku and Ryuji meet in the Metaverse and the first one to have healing abilities.
• Heroes Prefer Swords: Morgana and Zorro both wield swords in combat. Morgana has a Sinister Scimitar, while Zorro uses a rapier.
• Hypocritical Humor: He warns everyone (particularly Ryuji) not to trip the security systems in Madarame's Palace. Morgana's Gold Fever kicks in and he flings himself at a particularly shiny golden vase, which activates a cage of infrared lasers that traps everyone except Izuku and Makoto.
• I Am Not Weasel: Despite his tendency to use cat-related puns, Morgana despises being called a cat due to convincing himself that he had to have been human through his ability to talk and wield a Persona.
• Innocently Insensitive: He teases Izuku for his incredibly in-depth notes on numerous Heroes, but Morgana quickly realizes that he stepped onto a land mine when Izuku explains that he hoped to use those notes to get into U.A.
• Involuntary Shapeshifting: He transforms into a normal-looking house cat while in reality. Unlike his Morganamobile transformation, Morgana can't control this one. At the very least it allows Izuku to keep him around without arousing too much suspicion, though people wonder why Izuku talks to his loudly meowing cat.
• Loyal Animal Companion: After coming to the real world, Morgana stows away in Izuku's bag everywhere he goes and tries to push Izuku towards taking risks that could benefit the Phantom Thieves. He does have enough tact to give Izuku and Makoto their privacy when they sit down to talk.
• Mascot with Attitude: Morgana will mouth off to and belittle virtually anyone in his vicinity. He's particularly mean to Ryuji, but won't even make an exception for Ann (though he's decidedly gentler around her).
• Meaningful Name:
  • Morgana's codename, "Mona" comes from the real-life Mona Island off the coast of the Dominican Republic. Mona Island was the last destination Captain William Kidd dropped anchor before his ship was destroyed by a storm in 1699, and is believed to be the location of his buried treasure. Appropriately enough, Morgana is obsessed with treasure and it was Ryuji, who has Captain Kidd as his persona, who picked this name for him.
  • "Mona" could also come from the Mona Lisa, which was considered a subpar work of art until it was stolen from the Louvre without anyone noticing for an entire day. The newspapers went wild, and the Mona Lisa became a sensation. Ryuji picked out this name for Morgana for exactly this reason.
• The Medic: Morgana is the best healer in the party.
• Mentor Mascot: For the Thieves, due to his cartoony appearance as well as his in-depth knowledge of the Metaverse. He also tries to coax Izuku into taking potentially beneficial risks for the sake of the Thieves.
• MacGyvering: Morgana knows how to make tons of useful tools like smokescreens and lock picks from the loot that the Thieves find lying around the Palaces, which can be as mundane as yarn, aluminum sheets, and cork-board.
• The Mind Is a Plaything of the Body: Morgana reacts to Treasure like most cats would to catnip, leaping on top of it and meowing loudly at the top of his lungs.
• Mr. Exposition: He spends much of the early part of the story instructing Izuku and the gang about the mechanics of the Metaverse and the Cognitive World as well as how to act like Phantom Thieves.
• The Napoleon: Morgana is very, very bossy and initially wants Izuku and Ryuji as hired help more than anything else. He mellows out over time, becoming significantly more friendly even as he comes to consider the other thieves his friends. But his ego never really goes away.
• Occult Blue Eyes: Morgana's eyes are a vivid blue in his house cat form, managing to seemingly glow even in the dark confines of Izuku's bag.
• Running Gag: He frequently makes bold statements before following them with "probably" or "I think" or some other subjunctive phrase, nearly making Izuku Face Fault each time.
• Sinister Scimitar: Played with. Morgana can be decidedly manipulative and demanding, but he's rarely unreasonable and unkind even though he wields a scimitar in combat.
• Top-Heavy Guy: Both Morgana and Zorro are top-heavy, with Morgana's head being as large as the rest of his body and Zorro's torso dwarfing his legs.
• Trademark Favorite Food: Fish, especially fatty tuna.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: With Ryuji. They'll make jabs and snipes at each other all day long, but they're still the best of friends and trust each other with their lives.
• Voluntary Shapeshifting: He can turn into a Citroen van christened the "Morganamobile", which Izuku ends up driving around Mementos.
• Was Once a Man: Despite his complete lack of memories, Morgana believes this of himself since he can talk to humans like Izuku.
• Wrong Context Magic: His appearance is mistakenly attributed to a Quirk at first, with Izuku comparing Morgana to Nezu, U.A.'s principal. Morgana is ticked by this.

Ann Takamaki / "Panther"

Ann Takamaki / Panther

Arcana: VI. L'Amoureux (The Lovers)

Persona: Carmen

Weapons: Whips and Submachine Guns

Quirk: Razor Teeth

Carmen: "Tell me... Who is going to avenge her if you don't? Forgiving him was never the option... Such is the scream of the other you who dwells within. [...] There you go... Nothing can be solved by restraining yourself. Understand? Then I'll gladly lend you my strength."

^{Click here to see Panther} 

^{Click here to see Carmen} 

One of Ryuji's classmates, Ann is a fiery young woman known for her dazzling foreign looks through her Caucasian heritage. She is Shiho Suzui's best friend and is forced to do favors for Kamoshida in order to secure Shiho's place on the school volleyball team. She joins the Thieves after Izuku and Ryuji Failed a Spot Check and accidentally sucked her into the Metaverse.

Ann's Quirk is that her teeth have superhuman cutting power, letting her bite through hard materials like metal.

Her Persona is Carmen, the eponymous protagonist of Prosper Mérimée's novella and the play adapted from it, a smuggler who wooed countless men for fun and profit until she was murdered by one of her spurred lovers. She represents the Lovers Arcana.

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• Amazing Technicolor Population: Her Persona, Carmen, has pink skin.
• A Taste of Their Own Medicine: She dangles Kamoshida's Shadow over the balcony to make him experience exactly what Shiho felt, coming precariously close to dropping him right off.
• Battle Cry: "Dance, Carmen!"
• Big Eater: When sweets are involved, she'll down piles and piles of baked goods without stopping. Ryuji even lampshades this by pointing out that she needs to watch her calorie intake as a model, but she just tells him to shut up and let her enjoy it.
• Book Dumb: While she's one of the more level-headed members of the Thieves most of the time, she admits that her grades are poor outside of English (which she's fluent in). In the Metaverse, she, like Ryuji, often needs to have things explained to her and generally leaves Izuku to do most of the long-term planning. She's smarter than Ryuji, as she feels that she didn't do too bad thanks to Izuku's tutoring.
• But Not Too Foreign: She's one-quarter American and is implied to be of Finnish descent due to the etymology of her name. She was born and raised in Japan for the most part but spent enough time in America to become fluent in English.
• Cleavage Window: Her thief gear features one, to her displeasure.
• Cigar Chomper: Carmen always has a cigar in her mouth, representing her inclination towards manipulating fire.
• Classy Cat-Burglar: She wears a red, skintight Spy Catsuit, has a cat-shaped mask and is a phantom thief who goes by the Code Name "Panther".
• Comes Great Responsibility: Her motivation for continuing as a phantom thief.
  Ann: I mean, with this kind of power, don’t we have a responsibility to help? If I just ignored the problems of others just because they didn’t involve me, I’ll end up being no better than how I was before. I… I don’t want to live like that.
• Cutting the Knot: With time running short, rather than let Morgana finish picking the lock in Madarame's shack, Ann uses her Quirk to bite the old lock clean off.
• Dominatrix: Ann's use of a whip as a weapon and Carmen's tendency to string along two lovestruck butlers give this impression.
• Dumb Blonde: As mentioned above, she's Book Dumb and often leaves Izuku to do most of the long-term planning. She does have a good bit of common sense that Ryuji doesn't, mainly being better at keeping her mouth shut. Kamoshida's cognition of her exaggerates this, making her a skimpily dressed, lovestruck bimbo who does nothing but fawn over him.
• Friendless Background: Her Caucasian appearance made her the target of malicious rumors throughout her middle school and high school life. After coming to Shujin, she becomes friends with Shiho Suzui, who is her Only Friend until she becomes a phantom thief.
• Generation Xerox: Ann is a member of the fashion industry as a model while her parents are globe-trotting fashion designers.
• Girlish Pigtails: Both Ann and Carmen wear their hair like this. It emphasizes Ann's youth to disturbing results as Kamoshida's one-sided attraction towards her and her classmates' perceptions of her come to light.
• Gorgeous Gaijin: Her foreign looks get her a lot of attention and she has the most sensual outfit out of all of the Thieves.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: She has platinum blonde hair and is a genuinely nice and supportive person once you get past her prickly exterior.
• Half-Breed Discrimination: Due to her partially Caucasian heritage, her looks have made her the subject of rumors and scorn among her peers due to the extremely homogeneous nature of Japan's population. This is why she only has Shiho for a friend throughout middle school and high school until she becomes one of the Thieves. This is also why people buy into the rumors that she is having an affair with Kamoshida so easily. Due to the conservative nature of Japan, foreigners, especially those of Western descent, are stereotyped as being sexually aggressive compared to their Japanese peers.
• Impossibly-Low Neckline: Just look at Carmen's dress. It's a wonder that it stays on at all.
• Locked Out of the Loop: This didn't apply as a Phantom Thief, but Ann had no idea that Izuku would turn himself in for Kamoshida's murder until they successfully stole his Treasure. She calls him out on this and tells him to let her know about such an important detail in advance.
• More Dakka: Compared to Izuku and Ryuji, who use pistols/revolvers and shotguns respectively, Ann opts to use a submachine gun.
• Ms. Fanservice: Her thief gear is form-fitting and hugs all of her curves, has a huge Cleavage Window, is covered in zippers that would almost certainly leave her naked if any of them were pulled on, and she has a Dominatrix theme with her use of a whip. She's notably uncomfortable with this.
• Mukokuseki: Pivotal to her character. Because of her foreign heritage, she possesses Caucasian features that are extremely uncommon in Japan, causing others to stereotype and shun her even though she was born and raised in Japan for most of her life.
• My God, What Have I Done?: She's horrified when she realizes that Izuku would have turned himself in for Kamoshida's murder if she had decided to go through with her threat to kill him.
• Now That's Using Your Teeth!: She can bite through anything short of metal with ease with her Quirk, but even metal isn't safe if she tries hard enough. She admits that it's more embarrassing than useful, having bitten through countless chopsticks and at least four forks. She has to ask for a metal straw to keep herself from biting through it by accident while sitting down at a diner. She also uses it to take a bite out of a Shadow who was trying to hold her down.
• Pimped-Out Dress: Carmen's dress is a flowing flamenco dress designed after a rose with pink leopard print details near the top.
• Playing with Fire: Carmen specializes in the use of Agi, allowing Ann to throw powerful fireballs at her foes.
• Phenotype Stereotype: She's part-American and happens to have blond hair and blue eyes.
• Red Is Heroic: Her thief gear is the only one to be brightly red all-over instead of mostly black.
• Required Secondary Powers: She mentions that her tongue is unusually tough, allowing her to eat and speak without constantly cutting it on her razor-sharp teeth.
• Ship Tease: While Izuku and Morgana are out procuring supplies, Ann gets plenty of alone time with Ryuji where they banter and become closer friends. Morgana is acutely aware of this and is worried that he won't be able to return to human form before Ann falls for Ryuji.
• Slut-Shaming: Because of her appearance, Ann is pigeon-holed into the Japanese perception that Westerners are sexually aggressive. The other Shujin students spread rumors about her and say that she's having an affair with Kamoshida, leaving her lonely and ostracized with Shiho as her Only Friend until Ann meets Izuku and catches up with Ryuji.
• The Smurfette Principle: Of the founding members of the Phantom Thieves, Ann is the only female member.
• So Beautiful, It's a Curse: Her good looks make her the target of rumors that make her out to be a slut as well as Kamoshida's unwanted attention.
• Something about a Rose: Carmen's dress is colored and shaped like the petals of a rose on top of having an actual belt of roses around her waist. She uses the thorny vines to string two lovestruck butlers that she loves to stomp on.
• Stranger in a Familiar Land: Even though she's ethnically Japanese and was born and raised in Japan, she is still treated as an outsider simply because of her Caucasian features.
• Sweet Tooth: After their first successful heist, Ann and the others head to a pricey hotel buffet to celebrate. She immediately skips anything remotely resembling dinner and goes straight for the desserts, piling all sorts of cakes and pastries on her plate.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: With Ryuji. They'll make jabs and snipes at each other all day long, but they're still the best of friends and trust each other with their lives.
• What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: She says her Quirk is nowhere near Hero-class and is only useful when she's pigging out. Izuku assures her otherwise and it comes in handy when she's trying to escape Kamoshida's lackeys. Also when she bites the lock off the door in Madarame's shack, commenting that the lock was dusty.
• What You Are in the Dark: She had no idea about Izuku planning to turn himself in if Kamoshida dies due to the Metaverse so when she considers murdering his cognitive self as revenge for Shiho it became a test of character to her. She passes that test and was horrified about what she could have done.
• Weapon Specialization: Her weapon of choice in the Metaverse is a whip
• Zipperiffic: Her thief gear has numerous impractical zippers that go straight down the suit.

Makoto Niijima / "Queen"

Makoto Niijima / Queen

Arcana: II. La Papesse (The Priestess)

Persona: Johanna, Anat

Weapons: Knuckledusters and revolvers

Quirk: Absorption

Johanna: "You have finally found your own justice... Please... Never lose sight of it again... This memorable day marks your graduation from your false self..."

^{Click here to see Queen} 

^{Click here to see Johanna}  The Illusory Popess

A third-year student and Izuku's former neighbor and good friend. She once dreamed of becoming a Hero herself before moving away from Musutafu four years ago after the death of her father. She is the Student Council President of Shujin Academy, where rumors about whether or not she's involved in Kamoshida's abuse of the student-athletes get passed around regularly despite her genuine desire to help her fellow schoolmates. She is shocked to learn that Izuku had transferred in with an assault charge on his record and soon goes to greet him after he arrives unusually late on his first day of classes, becoming one of the only people to tolerate him at school. She joins the Phantom Thieves after learning of the Thieves' identities from Izuku and Kobayakawa's bribery of local policemen to keep quiet about Kamoshida.

Her Persona is Johanna, an apocryphal religious figure who is also known as Pope Joan. She disguised herself as a man to obtain a position in the Roman Catholic Church. Her myriad talents and unrivaled intellect fueled a meteoric rise through the church's ranks until she ascended to the papacy. But she was soon branded a criminal after her true sex was revealed. She represents the Priestess Arcana.

---

• Academic Alpha Bitch: Subverted. Her lofty position as Student Council President on top of her stellar grades makes others believe her to be this, even though the exact opposite is true. She's studious because she's being pressured to be and she would like nothing more than to help her fellow students despite the rumors that she's complicit with Kamoshida's behavior.
• Action Girl: She has a Hero-level Quirk and knows aikido and mixed martial arts. She was the first one to kick Bakugou's ass when they were kids and can even hold her own against Shadows in Madarame's Palace before she gets her Persona.
• Adaptational Badass: In addition to her existing badassitude, this version of Makoto also has a powerful Quirk that could have easily gotten her into Hero School and even allowed her to beat Bakugou.
• Adaptational Early Appearance: In the games, she only becomes relevant after the second Target's heart is stolen and goes unnamed for much of the early part of the story. Here, she's Izuku's Childhood Friend and is much more invested in his activities than Makoto was with Ren in the games, helping him acclimate to Shujin and worrying for him while he refuses to tell her what he's up to. She also joins the Thieves and awakens her Persona in Madarame's Palace rather than Kaneshiro's.
• Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: Makoto is a stranger to Joker in the original game and is actively working against the Phantom Thieves up to the point that she joins them. Here, she's a Childhood Friend of Izuku who encouraged him to work hard to achieve his dreams. She's kind and supportive of him and funneled information about Kobayakawa to him during their investigations. She also actively sabotages Kobayakawa's attempts to discover the identities of the Phantom Thieves.
• Affectionate Nickname: Izuku calls her "Koto-san" for short, which shows how close they are as he is never this informal with anyone else except for Bakugou, whom he still calls "Kacchan".
• Anger Born of Worry: She becomes cross with Izuku as he refuses to tell her what he's up to out of fear of dragging her down with him when things go wrong. Her responses range from giving him the cold shoulder to nailing him with a good chop to the head. She's tempted to outright deck him in the face when he reveals that he wants to continue being a phantom thief to help others.
• Atomic Superpower: Though she's a more physical fighter, she has access to the Frei line of Nuclear skills.
• Awesome by Analysis: As shown by the fact that she's at the top of her class, Makoto is just as skilled as Izuku in this regard. Morgana is stunned when she grasps all of the mechanics of the Metaverse he and Izuku told her about within minutes of being brought to Mementos.
• Badass Biker: She knows how to drive and Izuku mentions that she wanted her Hero Name to be "Biker Queen" when they were kids. Her Persona, Johanna, takes the form of a chrome and silver-plated motorcycle.
• Badass Bookworm: Izuku says that Makoto has a powerful Hero-level Quirk on top of her incredibly sharp mind. She served Bakugou his first defeat when they were younger and he could never get over the fact that she lost her aspirations to become a Hero. She also manages to beat up Shadows with just her Quirk and martial arts training while infiltrating Madarame's Palace, but she needs the rest of the Thieves to finish them off.
• Bad Liar: She and Izuku are horrible liars. While their excuses sound logical, their delivery is so forced and unnatural that it's a miracle anyone believes them. Lampshaded by Morgana.
  Sae: [to Izuku] Good to see you again, so soon. But what were you both doing out so late?
  Izuku: W-We were just out uh… jogging together!
  Makoto: Y-Yes, jogging together. As you can see from my… attire. I-It had been so long since we last worked out together, s-so we thought we'd hang out after school! Exercise stimulates the brain! Hehe…
  Morgana: [whispering] You two are the worst liars…
• Beware the Nice Ones: Her niceness and empathy belie just how much repressed anger she has boiling underneath the surface. After learning that Kobayakawa was covering for Kamoshida, she politely nodded and let herself out, all while fighting the urge to reach over to Kobayakawa and smash his face into the desk.
• Be Yourself: When they were kids, she told Izuku that he didn't need anyone's approval to chase his dreams. If he wanted to be a Hero, then he simply had to prove it to himself by trying. Izuku reminds her of this conversation while they're being swarmed by Shadows in Madarame's Palace, triggering the epiphany she needed to awaken her Persona.
• Big Damn Heroes: Just when Mishima's petition to enlist Recovery Girl's help in saving Shiho is about to be seized by Kamoshida, Makoto swoops in to rescue the form and get the third-years to sign it, much to Kamoshida's consternation.
• Big Sister Instinct: She was fiercely protective of Izuku when they were younger, with her older sister comparing their relationship to a lioness protecting her cubs. Even though she isn't as much of a mother hen as she once was, she still wants to protect and help Izuku as much as she can in the face of the social stigma he faces as both a Quirkless teen and a boy with a criminal record, funneling him any information she has about Kamoshida and being one of his closest confidants.
• Broken Pedestal: She's shaken to her core when she realizes that the police were being paid off to keep Kamoshida's abuses under wraps. This makes her start wondering if the Thieves were in fact justified.
• Childhood Friend: Was one to both Izuku and Bakugou when they were kids. Her support for Izuku's dream is what made him workout and try harder to achieve it. When she moved away, Bakugou's behavior worsened considerably.
• Combat Medic: Johanna can use healing spells along with her attacking spells, allowing Makoto to sub-in for Morgana's healing in a pinch. Unlike him, she's even more powerful in close combat thanks to her knuckledusters and Quirk.
• Condescending Compassion: She's genuinely nice, but her interactions with her kouhais, Izuku and Ryuji, come off like this, somewhat mocking their statuses as social pariahs and almost coddling Izuku while trying to keep him out of trouble.
• Conspicuous Gloves: Unlike her game counterpart, Makoto is always wearing gloves. They're heavily implied to be related to her Quirk.
• Cry into Chest: She gives Izuku a shoulder to lean on after he fails to stop Shiho from attempting suicide.
• Daddy's Girl: She looked up to her father when she was a child and wanted to be just like him when she grew up. She also encourages Izuku to chase his dreams while citing the advice her father gave to her.
• Deceased Parents Are the Best: Her mother is never mentioned but Makoto has nothing but good things to say about her father and his sense of honor and justice years after he was killed while on the job.
• Embarrassing Nickname: As children, Izuku, Bakugou, and Makoto played Hero together. Izuku still remembers the Hero name Makoto gave herself, "Biker Queen". Makoto shushes him before he can say the word, embarrassed by the title now. While infiltrating Madarame's Palace, she gets back at him by asking why his Code Name wasn't "All Might Jr." or "Super All Might".
• Energy Absorption: Part of her "Absorption" quirk is being able to absorb sources of energy, like electricity, through her left hand. She can freely channel the absorbed energy through any part of her body afterward.
• Genius Bruiser: She knows aikido and mixed martial arts from her days of training to become a Hero and has the best grades of her year. She holds her own fairly well against the Shadows in Madarame's Palace even before she gets a Persona, staggering them with her blows.
• Hero with Bad Publicity: She would like nothing more than to help her fellow students with their problems, especially after learning of Kamoshida's abuses from Izuku. Unfortunately, her position as the Student Council President means that a lot of people, including Ryuji and Ann, initially see her as complicit in the ordeal. Izuku is the only one who has absolute faith in her at the outset and knows that she would never let this sort of thing slide if she could help it.
• Idiot Ball: She's easily the most intelligent member of the Thieves next to Izuku, but her desire to be useful can overwhelm her common sense. She doesn't listen when Morgana tells everyone to retreat so they can open the locked door from the real world, triggering the alarms when she tries to disarm the security herself.
• I Know Karate: She took Aikido classes in the past and gives Izuku a good chop on the head for worrying her.
• Inspector Javert: Just like in the games, Kobayakawa coerces Makoto into heading an investigation into the Phantom Thieves after Kamoshida confesses by threatening Sae's reputation. What he doesn't know is that she already knows the identity of the Phantom Thieves and fully intends on abusing her new position to keep Izuku and his friends safe, especially after she overheard Kobayakawa talking to the police officers he paid off to keep Kamoshida's actions under wraps.
• Lightning Bruiser: Johanna gives her far more mobility than even Ryuji's Super-Speed Quirk. She's also a trained martial artist who supplements her brutal hand-to-hand combat with her Quirk while being tough enough to take hits on her own.
• Like Brother and Sister: Makoto tries her best to be a Cool Big Sis to Izuku much like their relationship in their earlier years acting as a guiding influence and always being there to support him. Izuku doesn't seem to have any romantic attraction towards her, but he still considers her one of his best friends and he has to talk himself into treating any girl he's just met like Makoto in order to get over his jitteriness. He also feels extremely guilty about keeping secrets from her and ends up promising to tell her everything about what he's been doing over the past month after Kamoshida confesses. When she joins the Phantom Thieves and awakens her Persona, she's always the first to rush to Izuku's aid by transporting him to safety on Johanna.
• Locked Out of the Loop: She spends much of the first part of the series aware that Izuku is up to something to deal with Kamoshida, but he refuses to provide her with any details out of fear of dragging her down with him should he somehow fail, making her feel powerless to help him even when he's doing this to protect her. He spills the beans to her completely in Chapter 17 after Kamoshida confesses. While she's initially rather understanding and ultimately approves of Kamoshida's change of heart, she is furious when she learns that Izuku is considering repeating the stunt on other people abusing their positions of power, questioning whether or not forcing people to repent is moral and chastising him for not following the code of the law out of fear for his safety and his probation.
• Material Mimicry: Makoto's "Absorption" Quirk lets her absorb any non-living matter with her right hand, like metal or concrete, and change her body to emulate it. In a demonstration, she absorbed the steel of a nearby car and make her right arm metal. She can also reshape her body parts when they're like this, giving her arms claws after mimicking the properties of gunmetal alloy.
• Meaningful Name:
  • Her code name is Queen, and she holds the top position in the student council.
  • Her given name (真) can be translated variously as "truth", "sincerity" or "seriousness", which are all concepts she values and describe her very well.
• Morality Chain: Izuku notes that Bakugou's behavior was more subdued around her. Once she moved away, he became a full-blown Jerkass who went out of his way to make Izuku miserable.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: She grabs the Idiot Ball while infiltrating Madarame's Palace by trying to disarm the security systems with her Quirk over Morgana's advice. This ends up setting off the alarms and surrounding the Thieves with Shadows.
• Positive Friend Influence: Izuku's physical fitness in this story is largely attributed to Makoto encouraging him to work hard to achieve his dream on his own merits.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: Inverted. Izuku only knows two people with red eyes: Bakugou and Makoto. Makoto is one of his closest friends at school and one of the few to believe in him even with the weight of his criminal record holding him down, causing her to become one of his closest confidants and allies in the school. Played straight when she's fighting, as she's a brutal hand-to-hand combatant and she has a lot of repressed anger boiling beneath the surface.
• The Reliable One: Deconstructed. The principal frequently forces work onto her shoulders as the student council president that no teenager should have to, like investigating a band of brainwashing Villains calling themselves the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. She's so desperate to please others and be useful to them (particularly Izuku and Sae) that it can easily overwhelm her better judgment. She ends up tripping the alarms in Madarame's Palace by accident when she tries to disarm the security system on her own with her Quirk.
• Secret-Keeper: She reluctantly agrees to keep Izuku's secret after he tells her everything out of consideration for his well-being and the knowledge that he would almost certainly be sent to prison as a Vigilante given the already precarious nature of his probation. She also makes it clear that she plans on talking him out of it somehow and doesn't approve of his activities.
• Student Council President: Deconstructed. While it's prestigious on paper, most of the time Makoto is nothing more than a glorified gopher for the principal, causing the student body to speculate that she's aware of and complicit in Kamoshida's abuses. It does grant her a certain amount of political leverage in the school because of how it helps her win over some of the teachers along with her excellent grades, which she uses as much as possible to help Izuku.
• Teacher's Pet: Her stellar grades make her this among the school faculty, which she uses to wring information out of them for Izuku's benefit.
• Tomboy: Was this in her younger years. Izuku doesn't recognize her at first because he's so used to seeing her in a t-shirt and shorts rather than her distinctly feminine school uniform.
• Tragic Dream: Like Izuku, Makoto dreamed of becoming a Hero, but it's implied that her sister Sae insisted that Makoto stay in school and go to a prestigious college, making her go to Shujin instead of applying to a Hero school like U.A.
• Waistcoat of Style: In contrast to the standard blazer of Shujin Academy.
• "Well Done, Daughter!" Girl: She desperately wants approval from her sister because she feels powerless and useless. This is the reason why Makoto overachieves in school and is tempted to do Kobayakawa's bidding. This also bites her in the rear when her obsession with being useful leads her to try and disarm Madarame's security system on her own, which only sets the alarms off. When Izuku realizes this, he shouts at her to remember the advice she'd given him after he learned he was Quirkless and that she needed no one's approval but her own.

Yusuke Kitagawa / "Fox"

Yusuke Kitagawa / Fox

Arcana: IV. L'Empereur (The Emperor)

Persona: Goemon

Weapons: Katanas and Assault Rifles

Quirk: Ink Dispenser

Goemon: "Have you finally come to your senses? How foolishly you averted your eyes from the truth... A deplorable imitation indeed. [...] This world is filled with both beauty and vice... It is time you teach people which is which!"

^{Click here to see Fox} 

^{Click here to see Goemon}  The Gallant Rogue

A second-year student at Kosei High's fine arts division and the pupil of the world-famous artist Ichiryusai Madarame. He ends up chasing down Ann after he saw her in the train station, asking her to be the model for his next painting.

His Persona is the Emperor Arcana's Goemon - Ishikawa Goemon, a real-world ninja who would steal from the rich to give to the poor in 16th century Japan. After a failed assassination on a civil war-era warlord, Goemon and his son were executed. Persona Goemon is dressed in exaggerated classical Japanese attire, complete with massive sandals and garish robes.

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• An Ice Person: His Persona, Goemon specializes in producing ice with the Bufu spell line.
• Berserk Button: Badmouthing Madarame is an easy way to get on his nerves. The mere mention of plagiarism is enough to get Yusuke shouting at Izuku and co. even when they make it clear that they know what's happening and they're trying to help him.
• Broken Pedestal: It is when he sees Madarame's true self in his Palace when this finally occurs to him and awakens his Persona.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Before the Madarame arc begins, he's first seen watching Ann in a diner she and Ryuji were visiting together.
• Eccentric Artist: He follows Ann on the subway and doesn't seem to register the fact that this could be considered stalking.
• Happiness in Slavery: Painfully subverted. He admits to Nakanohara that he hates his current position and knows that he's being abused and exploited, but at the same time he can't bring himself to leave when he feels that he owes his life to Madarame for raising him. He rationalizes Madarame's behavior to cope with this dissonance and repeatedly gets in the way of the Phantom Thieves' attempts to change Madarame's heart.
• Katanas Are Just Better: He wields one in combat as an Iaijutsu Practitioner.
• Large Ham: Normally he's rather calm and reserved, but once his artistic spirit gets riled up he goes full ham.
• Not So Stoic: Yusuke blows up on Izuku and his friends for suggesting that Madarame is using him, which he knows but is in deep denial about. When Madarame outright states that he sees Yusuke as nothing but a tool and let his mother die, Yusuke forgoes his usually calm demeanor. When Madarame is undergoing his change of heart, it takes all of Yusuke’s willpower to not show his hidden resentment.
• Starving Artist: Madarame literally starves Yusuke by giving him barely enough to get by, which Yusuke tends to spend on buying more art supplies in any case.
• Sword Drag: Fox drags his katana across the floor, causing a few sparks to rise, to intimidate Overhaul's Shadow with the threat of cutting off his hands.

"Nitro" (Unmarked Spoilers for the Third Palace)

Katsuki Bakugou

Arcana: ?. Unknown

Persona: Tombstone

Weapons: Axes and Gatling guns

Quirk: Explosion

Tombstone: "It's about time, boy. Thought you'd never open your eyes. But now you see it. Riding alone never got you anywhere. Let this gang of rebels back you up when you fall short. Face your weakness! Trample it as you ride into the sunset! [...] Your anger, your frustration, your indignation… load it all into the chamber and settle the score! It's high time for you to bring justice to the world YOUR WAY!"

^{Click here to see Nitro} 

^{Click here to see Tombstone} 

Izuku's former Childhood Friend and longtime tormentor, who stumbled upon the Phantom Thieves' operations and ended up being recruited into their ranks. His powerful Quirk and skill at heroism could make him a valuable teammate... if he can get along with the other thieves.

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• Affectionate Nickname:
  • Izuku still calls Bakugou "Kacchan" out of habit even after years of being tormented by him.
  • Makoto refers to him as "Baka-chan", though this is also an Embarrassing Nickname because she's essentially calling him a cute little idiot.
• Anime Hair: Explosively spiky hair much like a comic book starburst.
• Atomic Superpower: His Persona Tombstone specializes in Nuclear skills, along with Gun skills.
• Berserk Button: Makoto. She was the first person to ever beat him in a fight, and he's furious that her quitting her aspirations of becoming a Hero has robbed him of the chance for a rematch, angrily calling her a quitter and a bitch over it.
• Broken Ace: He has it all: the brains, the athleticism, and the Quirk needed to get into the best Hero school in the country. Despite this, he soon realized that some of his classmates in 1-A were just as good, if not better than he is.
• BFG:
  • His Persona wields one in the form of a triple-barreled shotgun.
  • Alongside his tomahawks, Katsuki adds a gatling gun to his arsenal of weapons.
• Born Winner: He coasted all the way through elementary and middle school on his natural talent for both sports and academics and has a very powerful and rare Quirk that got him into a school with a 0.33% acceptance rate.
• Break the Badass: He's described as someone who is difficult to horrify, but even he hits his limit when he discovers just what Overhaul has been doing to Eri.
• Break the Haughty: His time in U.A. has been a huge wake-up call for him. In spite of his incredible talents and fighting capability, there are people stronger than him. Chapter 36 even ups the ante thanks to Shadow Bakugo delivering a "The Reason You Suck" Speech to him, blatantly bringing up his shortcomings to the Phantom Thieves. Thankfully, though, he does get better.
• Brought Down to Badass: It doesn't stick, obviously, but in Chapter 34 a former bully who tried to pick on Bakugo as a kid shots him with a Quirk-nullifying bullet. It doesn't hinder him much and Bakugo is able to take the former bully down.
• Bully Turned Buddy: After getting his Quirk and learning that Izuku was Quirkless, Bakugou and his cronies tormented Izuku all throughout their childhood, but facing some of his demons after obtaining his Persona has made him start very gradually start treating his former friend with a bit more respect.
• Cowboy: His Persona and his Metaverse attire in a nutshell.
• Cowboy Cop: Tombstone is based off of one, particularly famous for dispatching his own brand of justice on outlaws and criminals, not unlike Bakugou who acts more like a villain when fighting other villains.
• Drink-Based Characterization: Drinks his coffee with cream and sugar, surprising Ryuji who thought that he'd drink it black. This shows that he's a Jerk with a Heart of Gold despite his abrasive exterior.
• Duel Boss: His price for keeping the Phantom Thieves' identities secret is a one-on-one fight with Makoto.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Izuku and Makoto bring Bakugou up periodically in their dialogue and thoughts long before he makes a physical appearance in the story.
• Establishing Character Moment: His first physical appearance in the story has him cussing about the lateness of the trains as he's furiously mashing the buttons on his phone. When he realizes Izuku is staring at him, the first thing he does is call him a bastard and asking why the hell he was at the same station as him.
• Everyone Has Standards: He is just as horrified as the rest of the thieves when he learns that Eri is facing horrifying levels of abuse to harvest her blood for the quirk-erasing bullets that the Shie Hassaikai are developing.
• Foil:
  • To Izuku. Izuku is a Born Unlucky Un-Sorcerer Shrinking Violet who wanted to become a Hero solely to help others but circumstances outside of his control kept him from going to the school of his dreams. Bakugou is The Ace, a Born Winner, and a Smug Super who mouths off and attacks anyone he doesn't like and wants to become a Hero to cement his ideal of strength above all.
  • He's also one to Ryuji. Both of them are foul-mouthed blonds who are talented in their respective fields (Track for Ryuji and pretty much everything for Bakugou). But Ryuji is a Book Dumb Nice Guy who was ostracized by his peers after an impulsive decision led to the loss of most of his running ability and cut the power of his Quirk in half. Bakugou is a Jerkass Born Winner who received nothing but praise and envy from others for his overwhelming talent, getting into the most prestigious Hero school in Japan on his raw power and intelligence and chastises Izuku for sticking his nose where it doesn't belong. While Ryuji dyes his hair blonde, Bakugou's is natural.
  • He's also one to Makoto. Both were Izuku's Childhood Friends and have red eyes. Makoto acts like a Cool Big Sis and wants nothing but the best for Izuku, but grows cross with him when his reckless heroics threaten to do more harm than good to him. Bakugou constantly puts him down and did everything to make Izuku's childhood a living hell simply because he couldn't stand seeing how a Quirkless kid like Izuku could have such a heroic attitude, making him think that Izuku was looking down on him.
• Gatling Good: His gun of choice.
• Genius Bruiser: He might have an extremely aggressive personality, but he's also just as intelligent as Izuku is. He immediately gets how the Metaverse works and quickly figures out how to get to Mementos on his own, much to Morgana and Ryuji's shock.
• Giver of Lame Names: The Phantom Thieves are not impressed with Bakugo's suggestions for his code name. First he tried "Lord Explosion Murder", which they all immediately vetoed. He then changes it to "Thief Explosion Murder", at which point Ryuji calls out that he's just randomly throwing words together.
• Having a Blast: His Quirk turns his sweat into a compound similar to nitroglycerin, allowing Bakugou to unleash powerful explosions from his hands at will. This makes him into the Phantom Thieves' explosives expert.
• Heroic Self-Deprecation: Shadow Bakugou is perfectly aware that his other self isn't as high and mighty as he thinks he is and regards Bakugou's attempts to prove otherwise as "pathetic."
• Hero with an F in Good: He's a grade-A Jerkass and a bully who is on track to become a Hero because his vision of a Hero is "someone who always wins" in contrast to Izuku's belief that a Hero is someone who can save another with a smile. He seems to have gotten somewhat better though since he doesn't throw any of his previous soul-crushing insults as he did in middle school. Despite all this, Izuku genuinely believes that Bakugou has the potential to become the Number One Hero and hopes that Bakugou's dream will one day come true.
• Humble Pie: Izuku believes that Bakugou's strangely subdued demeanor was because someone managed to one-up him at U.A. He says this because the last time he simmered down like this, it was because Makoto had beaten Bakugou.
• Hypocritical Heartwarming: He calls bullshit on Izuku's conviction, asking how the hell a nerd like him got convicted for assault when he didn't even do that much harm. He also points out that Izuku doesn't even have a Quirk to do harm with, making the conviction even more questionable. He then expresses his disappointment at being unable to crush Izuku at the U.A. Entrance Exam because of the latter's inability to take it in the first place. This was especially surprising to Izuku, who distinctly remembers Bakugou saying that he didn't want to even see Izuku at the exam. Morgana lampshades this, flabbergasted that this behavior could be considered concern.
  Morgana: That's how he expresses concern? I can't imagine what kind of bully he was…
• Inferiority Superiority Complex: His Shadow forces him to acknowledge that he's been burying his own insecurities behind his macho demeanor and arrogance.
• Instant Expert: His multi-talented nature means that he quickly masters anything he puts his mind to. Ryuji is shocked by how quickly Bakugou learns how to run quietly in Palaces and is an able fighter with and without his Persona.
• It's Personal: Implied. He visibly toys with the idea of turning the Phantom Thieves in until they mention they are going after the man distributing the Quirk-nullification bullets, which Bakugou ran afoul of a couple of chapters prior. Bakugou immediately agrees to keep their secret, on the condition that he gets a fight with Makoto.
• Jerkass: Foul-mouthed, rude, terribly malicious, and prone to holding deep-seated grudges.
• Jerkass Has a Point:
  • He charges an enemy Shadow without Izuku's order, and then states that it doesn't matter who actually initiates combat as long as everyone is on the same page about who they're fighting. The other Thieves admit he's not wrong, and that they've just gotten used to Izuku taking point.
  • He later gives them a much more serious one regarding the consequences of their actions as Phantom Thieves.
    Katsuki: What you guys are trying to do is a lot bigger than you act. That's a big ass social reform. You're gonna have a lot of people hating you for this shit, especially while things look good.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Izuku is genuinely surprised that Bakugou was rather tame and civil to him compared to their last encounter as well as Bakugou's disgust with Izuku's conviction.
• Karma Houdini: He never really gets his comeuppance for tormenting Izuku for years on end. Bakugou's elementary and middle school teachers did nothing to stop him because he was too athletic, smart, and gifted to punish without hurting the school's reputation. In Japan, bullying is also considered an internal affair to be dealt with privately than in a public setting, which only exacerbated the issue. Even Izuku can't bring himself to hold ill will towards Bakugou and admires the latter's talent and endless drive to be the best at what he does, wishing him the best and hoping that Bakugou becomes the Number One Hero one day.
• Leeroy Jenkins: He recklessly charges into Mementos in order to settle accounts with his own Shadow Self. He's also far and away the most hotheaded and aggressive of the Phantom Thieves, being the first to rush into combat to the point that Ryuji tells him to be careful.
• Malicious Misnaming: He calls Izuku, "Deku", after an alternate reading of the characters in Izuku's name. This reading can be written with different Kanji to call someone a wooden puppet, as in someone who will always be strung along by others and will never be able to achieve anything on their own.
• The Nicknamer: He never refers to any of his fellow UA students by name, always some basic description of their appearance.
• Precision F-Strike: While his language is even more colorful than Ryuji's, the one time he uses "bitch" is when Izuku brings up Makoto.
• Real Men Take It Black: Discussed and averted. When he first orders coffee with the other Thieves, he takes his with cream and sugar. Ryuji is shocked, having assumed that as a rough badass he'd drink his coffee black, but Bakugou declares that black coffee tastes terrible.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: The irises of his eyes are blood-red. Unlike Makoto, Bakugou is an incredibly unpleasant person to be around most of the time and hates Izuku's guts.
• Secret-Keeper: He blunders into a Phantom Thieves operation and learns their secret identities. He agrees to keep quiet on the condition that Makoto fights him one-on-one.
• Shotguns Are Just Better: Not Bakugou himself, but his Persona wields an enormous triple-barreled shotgun that shoots both Nuclear and Gun-element attacks.
• Sir Swears-a-Lot: He can barely go a single sentence without cussing, and even those instances are rare.
• Smarter Than You Look: His extremely short fuse belies a rather solid grasp of academia, best displayed when he quickly comprehends the explanation of the Metaverse. Izuku also notes that Bakugou's grades were always better than his.
• Smoking Is Cool: Much like Carmen, Tombstone is chomping a cigar at all times.
• Smug Super: He's very proud of his powerful and rare Quirk. It's implied that someone at U.A. managed to take him down a peg.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Bakugou being Bakugou, he has a relationship with the rest of the team that could tamely be described as "volcanic". He agrees to settle down and begrdugingly work with the others after Ryuji ends up Taking the Bullet for Bakugou during a normal Shadow encounter. His teamwork with the Thieves gradually improves as they traverse Chisaki's Palace.
• To Be a Master: His goal is to become the Number One Hero and surpass All Might.
• Wardrobe Flaw of Characterization: He completely forgoes a tie, leaves his dress shirt untucked, and wears his trousers baggily, showing his general disregard for authority and societal conventions.
• We Used to Be Friends: While Izuku does still consider Bakugo to be his friend to a certain extent, the same can't be said about Makoto. After she gave up on her dream of becoming a hero to help ease her sister's burden, Bakugo considers to be a "quitter" for throwing her dream away. When Izuku mentions he reunited with Makoto, Bakugo immediately blows up in anger. Though contrary to Bakugo's feelings, his Shadow states otherwise.
• With Catlike Tread: Subverted. When first taking him into a Palace, the other thieves are worried that Bakugou's aggressive personality and explosive temper would ruin their attempts at stealth and chide him for it. To the surprise of everyone but Izuku and Makoto, Bakugou quickly picks up the thieves' stealth manuevers.

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