Fanfic / Class 78th Watches the Future

Warning: Unmarked spoilers for Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc ahead.

Class 78th Watches the Future is a Danganronpa fanfic created by Spirit Soldier.

We all know the story of Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc: in her plan to spread despair across the world, Junko Enoshima erased her classmates' memories and trapped them in a Deadly Game, the ultimate prize being to escape to the outside world if they could get away with murder. However, one year into Class 78's time in Hope's Peak Academy, a mysterious man named Spirit teleports into their classroom and sweeps them to a strange place that lets them see their future selves as they fight against the murderous machinations of the malevolent Monokuma. But with the class seeing themselves driven to butcher one another and betrayal after betrayal, will Junko turn the attempt to save them into one that drives them to despair?

Can also be found on Archive of Our Own here.

Class 78th Watches the Future provides examples of:

• Adapted Out: The "Free Time" events were cut out of Chapter 5 to not disrupt Makoto's mood.
• Affectionate Gesture to the Head: Sayaka gives Makoto one as he examines the chickens and wonders if they've been modified, ruffling his hair.
• Armor-Piercing Question:
  • From Byakuya, after it comes out that Hina knew Sakura had committed suicide and attempted to sabotage the class trial to get everyone killed.
    Byakuya: In your grief and anger, you decided to take revenge on us. In your path to revenge, you decided to forfeit your own life, to drag Makoto and Kyoko down in the process, to justify it by saying that we all killed her, including yourself and them. How despicable.
    Hina found herself flinching at the Togami heir's words, with some of the students taking offense.
    Mondo: You better watch it, Togami! You're asking for-
    Byakuya: For what? A pummeling? A slap on the cheek? To be hated by you plebeians? Funny. Weren't you already doing that due to the actions of my future self?
    That piercing question caused a number of them to flinch, momentarily struck silent by Byakuya.
    Byakuya: You all were willing to demonize me thanks to my counterpart's actions; a few even tried to attack me over it. Yet when it's a dear friend that commits such a horrendous action, you're willing to overlook it? Even when she targets two people that have nothing to do with these events?
  • He does it again when everyone is debating against Kyoko's plan of Makoto distracting Monokuma while she uses the key she stole from him.
    Byakuya: Then tell me… what other choices do we have currently? All floors have been opened, and all avenues of escape blocked. The few rooms that are left unexplored are barred from us, with only one now available thanks to Sakura. Tell me, are there any options that don't involve confronting the mastermind at some level?
• Beware the Nice Ones:
  • Seeing how Hifumi became an Abhorrent Admirer to Alter Ego, Chihiro, one of the most kind-hearted people in the class, goes into "mother hen mode" and harshly forbids the Ultimate Fanfic Creator from seeing him and even requests Mondo to become Alter Ego's bodyguard, an offer Mondo happily accepts.
  • Sayaka begins to engage in this, as she is the one who slaps Byakuya for his future self's callous desire for Sakura to die, even thinking of Flipping the Bird at him. Later, she calls out Toko for her hypocrisy, as while Toko believes that the class sees her as disgusting, she insults them more often than not, something Toko herself finds unable to deny.
  • Makoto is mainly a Nice Guy and an All-Loving Hero, so even his classmates are shocked to see him get enraged, especially when he yells at Monokuma in fury for fabricating a suicide note from Sakura to manipulate Hina into trying to kill all of them.
    • He also has a similar reaction in Chapter 98 when he realizes that the mastermind is using Mukuro's body to stage a class trial.
• Big Brother Instinct: This trope is discussed in this fic in the aftermath of Class 78 watching the second case. Specifically, Makoto discusses this trope with Mondo. The reason he killed Chihiro was out of jealousy, as while he couldn't admit to the fact that he was responsible for the death of his older brother Daiya (i.e. forcing Daiya to commit a Heroic Sacrifice to save Mondo's life), Chihiro was willing to overcome his fear of how people would react to his true gender being revealed. Makoto works to not only help Mondo overcome his guilty feelings of killing Chihiro, but being responsible for Daiya's death. While Mondo points out that he was partially responsible due to being too hot-headed, Makoto points out that it was Daiya's choice to save him, leading to the quote below. Makoto himself also shows this, thinking that if his own little sister Komaru was in trouble, he would give his life to save her if he had to.
  It was his choice to save you, Mondo. It was his choice to give his life for yours. That's what any older sibling would do.
• Blunt "Yes": This is the response Hiro receives from multiple classmates when he asks if they think so lowly of him that they'd expect him to kill someone for ten million dollars. Not even Makoto tries to defend him at that point, seeing as he's well aware that Hiro would happily ask a friend to donate their organs or identity so he wouldn't need to deplete his life savings.
• Call-Forward: Over half the characters from Class 77 are briefly name-checked, including:
  • Mikan (Makoto has been injured enough times to befriend her)
  • Kazuichi
  • Gundham (Mondo compares Monokuma to "that Tanaka guy with the hamsters[, who] never shuts up about his black magic.")
  • Akane (Leon tells Hina she could match Owari in an eating contest if she wanted to)
  • Fuyuhiko (part of the same Yakuza clan Hiro got in trouble with)
  • Nekomaru (Sakura spars with him from time to time)
  • Sonia (Leon mocks Hina for swiping as many of the sweets she brought from her homeland as she could)
  • Teruteru (Hina had an embarrassing first meeting with him in the dining hall)
  • Chiaki (she's referenced as the Class 77 representative)
  • Nagito (Makoto recognizes him as the one from Celeste's story)
  • Mahiru (Chihiro suggests she may know how someone got an embarrassing photo of Leon).
• Class Representative: Makoto gained this role almost unanimously.
• Clueless Chick-Magnet: A generous way to describe Makoto, who has a density on par with osmium. Somehow, he doesn't realize that Kyoko, Sayaka, Mukuro, Hina, and Celeste all hold romantic feelings for him due to his kind and friendly (if occasionally dorky) nature. It is occasionally hinted that part of the reason behind this is his inferiority complex, believing that genuinely talented people like the rest of his class wouldn't be interested in him.
• Cooldown Hug: From Makoto to Hina, when she breaks down over her future self falling for the fake suicide note and trying to get everyone killed. He notes that he does the same thing with Komaru.
  Whenever she gets upset, and she has a hard time talking about it, I comfort her like this. Hug her until she lets out all her feelings.
• Death Glare: When Chihiro warns Hifumi to stay away from Alter Ego, his expression is described as "cute-but-deadly".
• Despair Event Horizon: Multiple throughout the viewing
  • Whenever a character gets killed off in the viewing, the present version and the people really close to them feel this.
    • It's even worse for the would-be killers who gain guilt from knowing they killed before watching themselves die.
    • This goes especially for Sayaka since she was both an attempted murderer and a victim, and technically the one who kickstarted the Killing Game.
  • After the characters obtain a Hope Spot, Monokuma finds a way to lead it to this.
• Didn't See That Coming:
  • Even Junko is left legitimately shocked when Hifumi briefly revives from his fatal head injury, and regained his memory (even if he doesn't live long enough to share much of note).
  • A good chunk of the class has this reaction to realizing that Sakura wasn't murdered, but rather committed suicide, many finding it unbelievable that the strongest member of the class would take their own life. While Leon wonders why no one believed suicide was a possibility, everyone else points out that every other time there was a death, it had been murder, plus the head wounds and Aoi's meddling made it harder to make it out as suicide.
  • Junko gets this again when Byakuya elects out of the Killing Game, as she felt that he would be divided against the rest of the class.
• Disappointed by the Motive: No one in the class is impressed to see why Celeste orchestrated the deaths of Taka and Hifumi. Sayaka pretty much sums up most of the class's thoughts while also giving a "Reason You Suck" Speech.
  Sayaka: YOU BITCH! You complete and utter bitch! How could you not regret anything you did?! Not even feel a shred of guilt from taking a life?! You manipulated Hifumi, framed both Taka and Hiro, got Hifumi to kill Taka before betraying him! ALL FOR A FUCKING CASTLE?!
  Leon: Sayaka, calm down!
  Sayaka: I can't, Leon! She had the nerve to say that she regrets nothing! The gall to look as if she did nothing wrong, that all that matters is pursuing her dream! ARE YOU SO APATHETIC TOWARDS PEOPLE THAT YOU DON'T EVEN FEEL A SHRED OF GUILT FOR WHAT YOU DID?!
• Don't Say Such Stupid Things!: In Chapter 4, when Sayaka lets loose her anger with Hina for sabotaging the class trial to get everyone killed, among the things that she's angriest about is Hina stating that she blamed herself for Sakura's suicide and that she deserved to be executed for it along with everyone else.
• Dumbass Has a Point:
  • While still slower on the uptake than others, Yasuhiro Hagakure points out that Makoto's "bad luck" in getting a faulty bathroom door made it easier for him to prove himself innocent in the first case. Pretty much everyone else put into Stunned Silence, with Celeste putting it best.
    Celeste: I think Hiro said something intelligent for once.
    • Additionally, he points out that he wouldn't be in the Robo Justice suit if he could take it off during the 3rd class trial, and there's also the canon discussion of the weapon that killed Hifumi (getting the weapon, killing Hifumi, and then placing it back where it was would be incredibly risky for the killer).
  • Mondo is nowhere near as stupid or clueless as Hiro, but he's still a Hot-Blooded person who usually acts before thinking. However, during his confrontation with Celeste, he's accurately able to psychoanalyze her and discern her real motivations for orchestrating the deaths of Taka and Hifumi (her hatred of her ordinary past self) without the help of anyone else.
• Eating the Eye Candy: The girls very much enjoy the sight of Makoto's shower scene. The exceptions are Toko, who's Byakuya-sexual, and Junko, who's despair-sexual and not going to get horny over her destined Arch-Enemy.
• Endearingly Dorky: Makoto in a nutshell. He isn't the most talented of his class and is quite clumsy; but his kindness, tolerance, and sincere friendship with everyone makes him very hard to hate for his class, with even the most antisocial members, Byakuya and Toko, seeing him in a respectful light. Sayaka and Hina even outright call Makoto Adorkable.
• Enraged by Idiocy: A pretty good way to define the class' reaction to about 90% of Hiro's Free Time Events and other moments that highlight his thought process. Some highlights include his "explanation" of his clairvoyant abilities and sales pitch for a recording that's supposed to aid the listener in enlightenment (Junko was left massaging her forehead going "Ow. Ow, my brain." at the sheer stupidity involved), his recounting of his "close encounter with aliens" (Which led Leon to ask him point blank whether he was on drugs), his theory that the culprit of Case 3 would be either Chihiro or Alter Ego (Mondo actually had to be physically restrained from beating Hiro to a pulp), and his revelation that he was conned into paying a million dollars for a glass ball (Byakuya lost his temper at that, and Celeste mused that she was right to classify Hiro as D-Rank). Of course, there's also the way everyone reacted when they learned Hiro was willing to ask Makoto to sell his organs to pay off his debt, rather than dip into his retirement fund, but that's a different trope.
• Entertainingly Wrong: During the break between Chapters 3 and 4, Makoto confronts Mukuro about the note he received, getting her to admit that she knows who the Mastermind is and that she intends to work with them because of a debt she feels she can never repay, even after seeing her own murder. Makoto later concludes that this must be why Junko isn't part of the killing game: Mukuro asked the mastermind to keep her out of it. "If there's something he's confident in, is that the soldier is devoted to her twin first and foremost."
• Even the Loving Hero Has Hated Ones: Makoto is a very All-Loving Hero, accepting of his classmates' various quirks and personalities, even befriending the Serial Killer split personality of Toko, Genocide Jill. However, he comes to utterly despise Monokuma and the mastermind for their sadism and cruelty to his friends, considering them "bastards". Ultimately, Makoto reaches the Rage Breaking Point when Monokuma reveals that he swapped Sakura's suicide note with one he forged to manipulate Hina, already left in an unstable state from the discord he caused, into killing everyone. He calls Monokuma scum and states that it was only because of him that Hina falsified evidence. This only worsens when he sees that the mastermind was willing to desecrate Mukuro's body to fake a murder, outright calling them "THAT SON OF A BITCH".
• Everyone Has Standards: Suffice to say, no one is particularly happy that Hiro tried to get Makoto to sell his organs and identity. Hifumi Yamada calls him worse than the villains he comes up with, and even the wealthy Jerkass Byakuya Togami, who values money above most people, feels that what Hiro asked of Makoto was disgusting.
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Just like her canon self, Junko can't understand how hope is stronger than despair, repeatedly ranting and complaining about how Makoto repeatedly refuses to fall into despair.
• Foil: Makoto and Junko become this in several respects, much like in canon.
  • Whereas Makoto is The Heart, Junko is the Big Bad.
  • Makoto sees the best in everyone, while Junko tries to bring out the worst in everyone.
  • Makoto tries to rally the class and give them hope, while Junko wants to squash any hope the class has.
  • Makoto would give his life if it would save his little sister Komaru, while Junko has no issue killing her older sister Mukuro if it would make her feel despair.
  • Makoto's luck makes things unpredictable for everyone around him, while Junko's Awesomeness by Analysis makes things predictable for her.
  • Makoto partially blames himself for each murder even though he wasn't the killer each time while Junko deflects any responsibility for the deaths that occur despite being the Mastermind.
  • The best way they are contrasted is when Makoto comes to comfort Mukuro after she learns her younger sister would happily sacrifice her for despair.
    His words, his tone....it's so different from her sister's. Instead of eyes filled with despair, it's filled with hope. Instead of a tone of cruelty, there's limitless kindness in his tone. Instead of a crazed smile on a fake mask, it's a genuine smile that could light up the darkest hearts.
• Go Through Me: When Chihiro's true gender is exposed, Genocide Jill openly considers killing him since "he's an adorable boy". However, she finds her plan halted by not only Mondo Owada and Leon Kuwata, whom Chihiro had confided in earlier along with Makoto Naegi, but also Sakura Ogami and Aoi Asahina. This gets more heartwarming since after The Reveal, Chihiro was worried that his classmates would hate him, but this proves they still accept him and even sympathize with his reason for cross-dressing (an Aversion of School Bullying Is Harmless left him with crippling inferiority of his physical strength).
• Hate Sink: Monokuma becomes this In-Universe. To the readers, he's the same Laughably Evil self he was in the original visual novel, but it's a different story for his future victims, i.e. the main characters. His sick sense of humor, callous disregard for the class, sadistic tendencies, and Hope Crusher actions infuriate everyone, with even Makoto finding him one of the few things that can anger him, outright calling him a bastard after his callous disregard of Mukuro's death. The hate is bad enough that some of the class want items like stuffed Monokuma dolls or punching bags with Monokuma's face in order to exert their anger.
• Heel Realization: Throughout Chapter 4, Hiro and Toko are the most adamant that Sakura, having been revealed as The Mole and that her job was to become the first killer, will attempt to murder them. However, they begin to realize just how wrong they were over time, with them first being revealed as attempted murderers of Sakura, and then learning that Sakura genuinely tried to reconcile with them and make amends. Hiro is shown to slowly feel guilty about his actions, and his mental attempts to defend himself start ringing hollow; Toko has her realizing that Sayaka's "Reason You Suck" Speech was spot on in how she thought that everyone was out to get her while the reality is that there are those who genuinely want to be her friend.
  Toko: I… really am pathetic, aren't I?
• Hope Crusher: What Junko attempts to become to both her present and future classmates.
• Humble Hero: Makoto in spades. While he is one of the smarter students in the class (others include Kyoko, Byakuya, and Junko), he is still very down-to-earth and humble, seeing himself as nothing special despite his ability to solve each of the cases. Unlike other examples of this trope, though, it's also implied to be due to his lack of confidence and inferiority complex of being the only Ordinary High-School Student in a school for the extraordinary. Many members of his class do occasionally call him out for his deprecation.
• I Hate Past Me: This trope, combined with Future Me Scares Me, is present, as the ones watching the visual novel are, as in the title, Class 78. Since Makoto and Kyoko are able to figure out that the class had lost their memories, they (minus Mukuro since she's playing as Junko) experience how they behaved in the beginning. With them able to see their behavior from the more neutral view of Makoto, some experience frustration with the way they behave, such as Kyoko with her inability to trust or let go of grudges, Toko for her paranoia and distrust, Kiyotaka for his insensitivity towards Sayaka being murdered in Makoto's room and boisterous attitude to studying, and Byakuya with his arrogance and belief he will never lose.
  • Byakuya becomes an especially good example of this trope, as his future self's constant arrogance, disregard for everyone else, and selfishness also start annoying him, with him finding his behavior out of line.
• It's All My Fault:
  • Mukuro's conscience shows she has these thoughts as she sees Makoto's traumatized reaction to the first motive:
    It's your fault. You let this happen. You know Junko's plan and could've stopped it. You could stop it now, but you won't.
  • Since she was the first one to attempt murder, Sayaka develops a massive guilt complex for being the one who ultimately begins the Deadly Game, one that worsens as the murders and executions become crueler and crueler. Even with Leon and Makoto working to try to assure that she wasn't responsible for anything afterward, she very clearly sees herself in a negative light for kicking off the killing game.
  • Makoto himself has a guilt complex of his own, noticed by Junko. He partially blames himself for each murder (he couldn't prevent Sayaka from attempting murder, gave Chihiro the idea to train with Mondo that led to his death, indirectly incited the rivalry between Taka and Hifumi that Celestia used to orchestrate both of their deaths, and chose not to speak to Sakura about her allegiance to the mastermind), and Junko works to try and till these seeds of guilt.
• Jaw Drop: Junko is left in this when Future!Byakuya elects to no longer participate in the Killing Game and focus his attention on the mastermind.
• Joke and Receive: During the third case, Future!Celeste comes forth alarmed, with Leon jokingly asking if Future!Hifumi's body vanished. When Celeste confirms that such is the case, all the Ultimate Baseball Star can say is:
  I WAS KIDDING!
• Kuudere: Namechecked by Hifumi in reference to Kyoko, who gives him a Death Glare in response.
• Late-Arrival Spoiler: Most of the biggest twists from the final act of the game are revealed early on, albeit not necessarily to Makoto or most of the class. These include Junko being the mastermind, the fact that Mukuro is impersonating Junko, Kyoko being the daughter of the headmaster, and the fact that the class's memories of each other have been erased. Consequently, the class are also much quicker to solve other mysteries such as identifying the body in Chapter 5 before the Class Trial even starts.
• "Let's Watch Our Show" Plot: Duh. This is an interesting scenario, as unknown to them, the mastermind of the Deadly Game they're in, Junko, is also watching with them, curious to see if they'll figure out her identity and also look at how people will react to each motive.
• Loved by All: No one in the 78th Class of Hope's Peak really has a bad word to say about Makoto Naegi. Since the "viewing" is happening from his perspective, his First-Person Smartass and Covert Pervert tendencies do get him in trouble from time to time- for instance, during the class's introduction, or while Hiro and Hifumi dragged him into peeping on the girls. However, nothing he says or does throughout the events of the Killing Game is bad enough to shake the class's trust in him - for the most part, any missteps are forgiven after some embarrassment on his end, and some light teasing from his friends. (It certainly doesn't hurt that most of the girls in his class have crushes on him, and are thus quick to forgive the occasional hormonal impulse on Future Makoto's part.) While some of the more cynical students- mainly Byakuya, Celeste, and Kyoko- find their class rep's determination to trust in and forgive people insanely frustrating at times, they also acknowledge that that idealism is a part of who Makoto is, and respect it in its own right. The only exception to this uniform affection towards Makoto would be Junko Enoshima - and even that's complicated! Due to Junko's "despair" mentality, she appreciates his role as a Spanner in the Works, even as she hates his work as a Hope Bringer!
• Mass "Oh, Crap!": Given what they're watching, this was bound to happen. Some examples of this include:
  • Watching Jin Kirigiri getting executed.
  • Meeting Monokuma and seeing the situation they're in.
  • Really, all the times Monokuma reveals a motive.
  • The successive deaths of Sayaka and Mukuro disguised as Junko, and any following body discovery.
  • Makoto being accused of Sayaka's murder because of his bathroom being the scene of the crime.
  • Sakura being revealed as The Mole.
• Misplaced Retribution: Most of the characters get this at some point, in reference to things their future selves said or did, the usual justification being that the characters would have done the same things at the start of the school year:
  • Played for laughs several times when Makoto's First-Person Smartass or Covert Pervert moments come up and get him in trouble. Conversely, at one point he ends up avoiding punishment over the "man's fantasy" bathhouse scene (in contrast to Hiro and Hifumi, who dragged him into it and had already been punished) on the grounds that his future self has suffered enough.
  • However, it's played far more seriously with Byakuya. It's undeniable that the future Byakuya is an absolute scumbag: a self-centered Jerkass who simply sees the Deadly Game as something meant to be won by any means necessary, such as manipulating the second crime scene via Desecrating the Dead to see who he would need to be wary of if he was to commit murder or inciting disharmony by refusing to associate with the recently revealed traitor, Sakura, and even outright saying it would be better if she died. However, the present Byakuya is left holding the blame for his future self, being submitted to verbal bashing by the rest of his class. He does eventually call the rest of the class out for this trope when they were far more sympathetic to Hina's future self attempting a Total Party Kill. The only response anyone can offer to him is Sayaka reiterating that the video reflects who they were and what they were capable of just months earlier, and to her credit, she doesn't let herself or Hina off the hook.
  • Played with when everyone calls out Hiro for his future self asking Makoto to sell his organs to the Yakuza, as what really justifies that one is Makoto revealing that they actually had that conversation just weeks earlier.
• My Fist Forgives You: Mondo's response after Hifumi apologizes for his future self's murder of Taka. Taka doesn't approve, but Hifumi accepts it.
• Nausea Fuel: Mondo's execution, The Cage of Death, is this In-Universe, with Hiro, Hifumi, and Hina throwing up and leaving Sayaka, Makoto, and Leon extremely green. Essentially, the only two who aren't left nauseous by Mondo being melted into butter and then being eaten are Junko and Genocide Jill. Sayaka is rendered unable to eat in the process until Mukuro reassures her that Monokuma most likely wasn't actually eating Mondo's remains.
• Never My Fault: While Junko definitely had this in canon, it's put on full display here. Any time the class rightfully calls out Monokuma and the mastermind for forcing them to kill each other, she mentally claims she only pushes them to do so and that they're at fault, never mind the fact that her methods of "nudging" them to murder include threatening their friends or loved ones, planning on exposing their darkest secrets that could destroy their personal lives, asking them to kill in exchange for huge sums of money, revealing Sakura's allegiance to her to incite disharmony and betrayal, or swapping Sakura's suicide note for one that pushed Hina to attempt a Total Party Kill.
  • Discussed between Hifumi and Makoto, as the Ultimate Fanfic Creator, after having his feelings sorted, decides to apologize to Taka for his behavior towards him, both in the present and future, and especially for his future self murdering Taka's, stating that he's not going to be "the character type that refuses to admit he's wrong".
• Nightmare Fetishist: The executions are interesting only to Junko and Genocide Jill, albeit for different reasons. Junko is interested in how the executions induce despair in her victims, while Genocide Jill is fascinated by the creative mechanics of the executions.
• Not So Above It All: Leon describes Byakuya as such when his future self gets wrapped up in small talk moments after telling everyone to stay focused on finding the mastermind.
• Not So Similar: Celeste tries to deflect responsibility by claiming that Sayaka, like her, manipulated and attempted murder for the sake of her dream and Mondo killed when he fell to Monokuma's motive. However, Hina has absolutely none of it, citing this trope.
  Hina: Don't try to wiggle your way out of this! Sayaka's dream was her career, one she worked so hard to complete, with close friends at her side! Not some ridiculous and selfish thing like a castle and butlers! And Mondo's secret wasn't ridiculous either! He had to carry the guilt of his brother being killed for so long, while keeping a secret from all his friends! And he actually felt guilt! He regretted killing Chihiro, and wanted to own up for what he had done! But you… you don't even show a shred of remorse!
• Out-of-Character Alert: Future Hina ignoring an unsympathetic response from Future Hiro about Sakura's death while trying to push for the vote confuses everyone watching (even Junko).
• Papa Wolf: Seeing Hifumi lust over Alter Ego in the future triggers "mother hen" instincts in Chihiro, forbidding the Ultimate Fanfic Creator from coming near the AI in the current time.
• Pervert Revenge Mode:
  • Leon gets in the habit of throwing baseballs at Hifumi for his perverted remarks, later extending this to Toko as well.
  • Following the "man's fantasy" scene in the bathhouse, the girls severely punish Hiro and Hifumi for it, as well as Leon, Taka, and Mondo for supposedly watching the scene (Chihiro is spared since it's made clear that he didn't watch it, while Toko is actively trying to get Byakuya to watch it). The girls do consider punishing Makoto later (since he didn't resist Hiro and Hifumi as hard as he probably could have), deciding to have him be their maid, possibly in Sayaka's idol costume, but eventually abandon that plan despite Makoto himself being willing to go along with it if it would help relieve the tension. In any event, he ultimately gets his (misplaced) comeuppance when they watch a gratuitous scene of him in the shower inspired by a scene from Danganronpa: The Animation.
• Plot Armor: Namechecked by Hifumi, when he points out that Makoto, being the POV character, isn't going to be killed anytime soon.
• Pragmatic Adaptation: The Nonstop Debates are trimmed to just a quick runthrough of the dialogue while the Hangman's Gambit and Bullet Time Battles are cut to the conclusions to save time.
• Pragmatic Villainy: Junko and Mukuro agree to let this play out on the basis that they're outnumbered and have no idea what else Spirit can do.
• Rage Breaking Point:
  • Hina eventually reaches this watching Chapter 4. Byakuya's constant hatred and vilification of her best friend Sakura, the resulting distrust from both Hiro and Toko, Sakura's death, and Byakuya's heartless responses to the event caused her to develop a deep loathing of the trio to the point that she throws a bowl of hot miso soup at the Ultimate Affluent Progeny.
  • Makoto has one that builds up over the story. Across the story, he holds a vindictive hate of Monokuma for how cruel and manipulative he is, but he finally erupts in fury when Monokuma plays the Never My Fault card in response to faking Sakura's suicide note and blames Hina alone for her actions. He erupts in rage at the bear's claim, looking at the bear with nothing but hatred and calling him scum as he points out that it was because of his interference that Hina was pushed to the brink, concluding by calling the mastermind a "petty, rotten, gaslighting coward". He continues to curse out the mastermind when he finds out they used Mukuro's corpse and desecrated it to feign a murder.
• Secret-Keeper
  • Present-Day Makoto, Mondo, and Leon are this regarding Chihiro being a boy.
  • Present-day Makoto is also this for Celeste's true name.
• Significant Wardrobe Shift: Chihiro changes from crossdressing in girls' clothes to wearing clothes that fit his biological gender after Chapter 2 and talking with Makoto, Taka, and Mondo, signifying his willingness to reach his inner strength and his willingness to face adversity. However, it is downplayed by him feeling uncomfortable wearing masculine clothes publicly.
• Single Woman Seeks Good Man: This trope is the primary reason Makoto has earned the love of most of his female classmates. His willingness to see the good in everyone, all loving nature, Nice Guy self, and ability to befriend anyone endears him greatly to them.
• Swapped Roles: During Mondo and Celeste's confrontation during the break after Chapter 4, Mondo and Celeste switch roles. While Mondo is usually a Hot-Blooded and violent disposition and Celeste is a calm and collected maiden, Mondo's accurate psychoanalysis of Celeste leads the two reversing roles, with Celeste trying to slap him while Mondo, in the grip of Tranquil Fury, calmly grabs her hand.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech
  • Sayaka and Hina give a two-part version of this when they see why Celeste orchestrated the deaths of Taka and Hifumi. Sayaka's part has been mentioned earlier, so below is Hina's.
    Hina: You don't even show a shred of remorse! You laughed at the fact Hifumi believed what you said about Taka! You did everything for a shallow, worthless dream! YOU KILLED TWO PEOPLE FOR YOUR SELFISH DESIRES! THAT'S SICK! UNFORGIVABLE!
  • Sayaka gives a blistering one to Toko when she sees that she kept insulting Sakura to the point that Hina could no longer restrain herself, leading to Genocide Jack injuring her.
    You know? You really are pathetic, Toko[.] You claim we see you as disgusting, yet you insult all of us; you think none of us care about you, yet you show the most apathy. You believe we're bullies, who're just waiting for the chance to bring you down. Yet you and Jill are bigger bullies than anyone here, on screen. That really is pathetic!
• Take Our Word for It: Chapter 5 of the original game has a Think of the Censors! joke in which Monokuma vividly describes what he imagines went on between Makoto and Kyoko in the bathhouse, which is covered up by the words, "REMOVED TO CONFORM WITH LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL CENSORSHIP LAWS". The story handles this by cutting away to the class's reaction to his description, which has not been censored for them.
• Too Dumb to Live: Yes, Yasuhiro. Call Sakura having a boyfriend a joke right after being exposed to wanting to sell Makoto's organs and/or identity. There's no way someone close to both Sakura and Makoto (i.e. Hina) would want to beat you to a pulp after this.
• Tranquil Fury: Upon seeing Taka's murdered corpse, Mondo slips into this for once, building up his anger far more slowly before erupting, something that sends chills down everyone's spine.
• Trauma Button: Mondo being angry becomes this to Chihiro, considering that Future!Mondo murdered his future self in a fit of blind rage. Any time Mondo gets angry, he's shown to tense up instinctively.
• Troubled Fetal Position: This happens a lot. Examples of this include:
  • Sayaka and Toko's reaction to Leon's execution.
  • Chihiro's reaction to his own death (and several times afterward).
  • Toko having her Heel Realization.
• Violently Protective Girlfriend:
  • While not an Official Couple yet, Sayaka is very protective of Makoto, getting furious if Makoto in the future is harmed or threatened in any way. While that isn't to say the other four girls crushing on him (Hina, Mukuro, Kyoko, and Celestia) aren't protective of Makoto, Sayaka is the most verbally protective, especially after Makoto chooses to keep trusting her despite her attempt to frame him in the future. Some things that have angered her include:
    • Mondo punching and knocking out Makoto when tried to calm him down.
    • Makoto getting accused of her murder due to his bathroom being the scene of the murder.
    • Hiro trying to get Makoto to sell his organs and later his identity to get out of his debt with the Yakuza, even when he had life savings to fall back on.
    • Kyoko hypocritically chastising Makoto for hiding information when she had done the same thing repeatedly and insulting him and his character.
    • Hina attempting a Total Party Kill to avenge Sakura, even though Makoto had done nothing that hurt Sakura, unlike Toko, Hiro, and Byakuya.
  • Mukuro shows shades of this as well, as when Hiro tricked Makoto into donating his organs to the Kuzuryu clan without his consent, Mukuro protected him, something Makoto is immensely grateful for. She is also the most violently protective as if Future!Makoto is threatened or insulted, she has to restrain herself from stabbing the TV.
  • Kyoko has her own moments of this, as after the first case, she chides Sayaka for betraying Makoto, warning her that it's only because it was her future self who did it that she gets off with a warning, seeing betraying someone as innocent as Makoto as unforgivable.
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Makoto is pretty much a master of this trope, as while other class members struggle with their self-image after seeing what happens to them in the future, he works to try and help them and prove they are better people than they think. The two biggest examples, though, are as seen below:
  • The first happens in chapter 24, dealing with the aftermath of watching the first trial. Mukuro finds out that Junko simply sees her as another disposable pawn in her despair-spreading schemes, and her confrontation afterward leads the Ultimate Despair to confirm this notion. When Junko affirms that she would kill Mukuro without hesitation if it gave her despair, Mukuro breaks down crying after seeing that her loyalty and love were All for Nothing. When Makoto passes by, he hears her crying and works to comfort her. She hides her role in the Deadly Game their future selves are trapped in out of fear of Makoto's reaction (he did not immediately forgive Sayaka for framing him, so Mukuro worried what would happen if she admitted to being a co-conspirator in the game), but she does admit to her concerns that she's trapped in her path, and it will only end in her death. It's because of his speech that she starts to seriously think about revealing Junko's plans to him, but struggles to overcome her unwillingness to abandon her sister and fully defect.
    Mukuro: None of my training, none of my experiences, nothing prepared me to see my own death in the future. It's something you just don't think about. When you fight, you're always thinking ahead of [your] opponents, always looking for openings and planning ahead. You down one person and you've already figured out how to take on the next five. The last thing you want to think about is your own death, and now that I've seen it….I can't help but wonder if this will be my future. If I'm just going to fight until I die...
    Makoto: No, that's wrong. I'm no soldier, Mukuro, but even I know that the best laid out plans don't always go as planned. Things are always changing, just like in life, [things] aren't always set in stone. Just because you have a road laid out in front of you doesn't mean you have to walk on it, you can always look for other roads. And even then, I think spending the effort to find those other possibilities is more important than the end result itself. So that's why I believe there's a possibility that we'll all survive from this and that I'll be fighting for it once I find it. Besides, as morbid as it was, what we watched will help us I'm sure. We learned and [saw] things we otherwise might've not known. You're one of the best soldiers out there Mukuro, if not, the best. You said before that once you know the enemy fully, you can easily defeat them. And so, I believe in you Mukuro, and I hope you can believe in yourself as well.
  • The second one in chapter 41 follows the class watching the events of the second trial, where Mondo murdered Chihiro in a fit of jealous rage. Chihiro still has a lot of trouble understanding why Mondo would be jealous of him due to a severe inferiority complex, and this is where Makoto invokes this trope. Afterwards, he slowly starts becoming more comfortable in wearing clothes linking to his biological gender, wanting to be as strong as his future self.
    Makoto: Say Chihiro. How are you feeling?
    Chihiro: Not well.
    Makoto: Yeah, I can imagine that. Want to talk about it?
    Chihiro: ...Why? Why was Mondo jealous? What reason [was there] for him to be jealous of me?
    Makoto: It was because you were showing a strength he didn't have, Chihiro. Combined with the stress of the situation, he just…reacted. Seeing that you were someone that he tried to become was just too much for him.
    Chihiro: But I'm not strong! I'm weak! Weak enough to get myself killed! To have to rely on others support! I couldn't even help anyone before I died! I'm not strong. Not at all. I'm just a weak, little coward.
    Makoto: No, that's wrong! You aren't weak, Chihiro. And you're certainly not a coward. You have [an] inner strength inside you, one that is larger than you think.
    Chihiro: B-But-
    Makoto: Chihiro, you had the courage to admit to me, Mondo, and Leon that you were a guy. You had [the] courage to face the reveal of your secret when we were watching the trial. And may I remind you that your future self had no memory of Hope's Peak, so that inner strength was always there. You just didn't know it. You are strong Chihiro. After all, you saw it for yourself didn't you? It might not have been the best circumstances, but all you really needed was just a little push. I'm sure you must have been feeling the same way.
  • Ironically, he ends up being the recipient of this from his class twice.
    • The first occurs in chapter 33 when, in the future, Makoto admits to Chihiro his own feelings of inferiority about being the Ultimate Lucky Student, only being in Hope's Peak by simple chance while everyone else has their own talents that let them get scouted.
      Hina: Hey Makoto. Do you really feel that way?
      Makoto: Well, sometimes yeah. I mean, even though I forget about this sometimes when I talk to you guys, all of you have such amazing talents. Every one of you excel in your field. But me... other than my optimism, I'm just a normal guy lucky enough to be picked to go to Hope's Peak. And even then, it was quite the misfortune that got me into here. I know, it must be pretty stupid compared to the problems you guys have, but it's something I can't help feeling that.
      Sayaka: No. No, it's not stupid at all.
      Kyoko: We all got our insecurities, Makoto. There's no need to feel embarrassed about it.
      Leon: Yeah man, it's not that big of a problem.
      Mukuro: You may see yourself as inferior, but at the end of the day, we're all still part of Class 78.
    • The second time, in chapter 52 is technically started by Sakura in the future, when she is reminded of her boyfriend Kenshiro by Makoto when he refuses to laugh at her for having feminine feelings despite trying to be the strongest warrior on the planet. For reference in the format, THH! refers to the future version of the following character.
      THH!Sakura: I think that somehow... you remind me of him.
      THH!Makoto: Huh? Me?
      THH!Sakura: Well, in certain ways. Your build is obviously different, but you both have a strong core.
      THH!Makoto: Strong core...? N-No, I...
      THH!Sakura: You don't have to be modest. I know strength when I see it. Okay?
      THH!Makoto: O-Okay...
      Hina: Yeah, you're definitely way too modest, Makoto. If Sakura says you're strong, you have to be!
      Chihiro: And she isn't the only one who thinks that. I also think you're strong. And I'm sure everyone else think so too.
      Kiyotaka: Chihiro is correct on that! While not physically capable as some of us here, you have an inner strength that few can match!
      Mondo: I have to agree with my bro and Chihiro [here]. You definitely [have] a lot of courage inside your heart.
      Sayaka: If everyone else says so, then it must be true. You have a big heart, one that's willing to face anything.
      Kyoko: And I'm sure that heart will help everyone in the killing game.
      Makoto: Th-Thanks...
• You Monster!: Makoto's reaction to Monokuma murdering Mukuro and callously disregarding her death is to call the bear a "bastard", and upon learning that he swapped Sakura's suicide note with one he forged to push a broken Hina into killing everyone, Makoto calls the mastermind's mouthpiece "scum" while at the Rage Breaking Point. He also calls the mastermind a monster after learning that they desecrated Mukuro's corpse to fake a murder in Chapter 5.

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