Fanfic / Steal Your Way In

Robin: "Dear all Smashers. There is one among you who is a complete villain of greed. However, it is no ordinary greed. This villain is responsible for the grievous crime of constant tax fraud. We know who that person is and that person knows who they are as well."
Daisy: Tax fraud? Say what?
Robin: "Such acts are taking valuable resources from the federal department, which are needed to assist to poor. That's why we have decided to steal those twisted desires and make you confess your sins. This will be done tomorrow, so we hope you are ready. Signed, the Phantom Thieves."

The latest newcomer to the Super Smash Bros. roster has been announced. But instead of introducing himself like the others, he decides to try something a little unorthodox...

Steal Your Way In is a crossover fic by Invoked Ophiuchus, written in response to the introduction of Persona 5 protagonist Ren "Joker" Amamiya to the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate roster, in which Master Hand recruits the Phantom Thieves for help exposing a criminal among the Smashers. The story can be found on Fanfiction Dot Net and on Archive of Our Own.

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This fanfic provides examples of:

• Adaptational Villainy: Yoshi, Mario's kind and devoted companion, now lives a double life as a feared criminal mastermind.
• All-Loving Hero: Isabelle stands out as this among the Smashers, refusing to see Yoshi as irredeemable.
• And the Fandom Rejoiced: In-Universe, the reaction to Joker's reveal trailer.
• Ass Shove: When Wolf accuses Isabelle of being the target of the calling cards, Villager responds by shoving a cactus up his butt.
• Beneath Suspicion: When the calling cards accuse one of the Smashers of tax fraud, the immediate suspects are the villains, the royals, or the bureaucrats (with Isabelle taking offense to this). No one suspects Yoshi, with Mario and Luigi sarcastically bringing up the possibility and laughing about it.
• Broken Pedestal: The Smashers' reaction when Yoshi confesses to his numerous crimes. Mario in particular is devastated by the revelation that one of his closest friends is responsible for so much suffering.
• Calling Card: Part of the Phantom Thieves' MO.
• Gangsterland: Yoshi's palace is modeled on Prohibition-era Chicago, with Shadow Yoshi himself a reference to Al Capone, a vicious gangster who was brought down by tax evasion charges.
• Good is Not Nice: The Phantom Thieves of Hearts are dedicated to defending those who can't defend themselves. Their target is a ruthless criminal who needs to pay for the harm they've caused. None of that stops Joker from being a smug jerk a good portion of the time, towards enemies and new acquaintances alike... and by neglecting to name their target in their calling card, the Thieves inadvertently cause a lot more distress among the Smashers than was strictly necessary.
• A House Divided: The Smashers are quite quick to turn on each other in response to the tax fraud allegations, since the calling cards didn't name anyone.
• I've Come Too Far: Yoshi's flashbacks reach this point, after which he stops even pretending to feel guilty about his actions:
  I've gotten myself in too deep. I'm not backing down anymore.
  There's no point.
• In Medias Res: The first chapter opens as the Phantom Thieves finish securing the Palace infiltration route, before cutting to the delivery of their calling card to the Smash mansion. Later chapters include flashbacks to them being approached by Master Hand, and to Yoshi's descent.
• In Mysterious Ways: Mario describes Master Hand like this, at the time unaware that he was the one who recruited the Phantom Thieves.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Once Shadow Yoshi is beaten and his treasure stolen, his conscience catches up with him and he confesses his crimes to the Smashers.
• Mythology Gag: It's mentioned the protagonists of other Persona games were considered for Smash, but Yu Narukami turned down the invitation due to being busy with work, Makoto Yuki was rejected for "ongoing health reasons" and Tatsuya Suou couldn't be found.
• No Indoor Voice: Master Hand speaks in ALL CAPS.
• Pet the Dog: Even at the peak of his villainy, Yoshi still cared for his friends and would use his illicit wealth and influence to secretly help them in a number of ways; namely by pulling strings to keep Mario and Luigi from getting in trouble with their own taxes and replacing Toad's landlord with a contact of his own to prevent the latter from getting evicted.
• Shoot the Messenger: Ren predicts that the Smashers will not be happy with the Phantom Thieves for exposing Yoshi, and that this will create issues when he joins their roster, though Master Hand promises to protect him. As it happens, it's downplayed when Mario meets Joker. He admits that while Joker did the right thing, he can't help but resent him for reducing his friend to tears, and challenges him to a one-on-one fight to get it out of his system.
• Slowly Slipping Into Evil: Act 3 has several flashbacks from Yoshi's point of view, depicting his downfall into crime. He started with genuinely good intentions to help Yoshi's Island catch up with the rest of the world, only to gradually become greedier as he learned to get around the Mushroom Kingdom IRS, and starts making flimsy rationalizations to justify worse crimes. By the time the story starts, he has connections with organized crime in several different worlds.
• This Cannot Be!: Shadow Yoshi's reaction to his defeat by the Phantom Thieves.
• Unspoken Plan Guarantee: Joker whispers to the others his plan for sending the calling card, all of them agreeing it's a good idea. Cut to a package being delivered, addressed to "the entire Smash Mansion", which erupts with red and black cards when it's opened, knocking Isabelle unconscious.
• Villainous Gentrification: Yoshi's changes to the island start to fall into this, despite his good intentions, earning him an enemy on the council.
• Villain with Good Publicity: Yoshi.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Mario is not happy with Master Hand for not confiding in him, Luigi or Peach about Yoshi's crimes and instead bringing in Joker to deal with it.