Ryuji Sakamoto

Ryuji Sakamoto is a playable character from Persona 5. He is a student at Shujin Academy and a former track star who lives a double life as a Phantom Thief. He is the protagonist's right-hand man and the Phantom Thieves' charge commander.{{Q|So I was thinkin' about the future. With you as the leader, and me as your right-hand man...|Ryuji Sakamoto during invitation at Ichigaya on 7/3, Persona 5* Note: it's very likely Akechi's referring to Ryuji as one of the protagonist's partners: if so, he's implying Ryuji's outright deadweight. It's very likely he's not referring to Ryuji as his partner specifically.
==Appearances==
*Persona 5 / Royal: Playable Character; Chariot Confidant
**Persona 5 (Manga): Major Character
**Persona 5: Mementos Mission: Major Character
**Persona 5 Dengeki Comic Anthology: Major Character
**Persona 5 Comic à La Carte: Major Character
**Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers: Major Character
**Persona 5 The Animation: Major Character
***Persona O.A.: Major Character
**Persona 5 The Stage
*Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight: Playable Character; Chariot Social
*Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight: DLC support voice
*Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth: Playable Character
**Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth Roundabout Special
*Persona 5 Strikers: Playable Character
*Persona 5 Tactica: Playable Character
*Persona 5: The Phantom X: Side/Playable Character
==Design==
===Civilian===
Ryuji has short spiky dyed blond hair and dark brown eyes. According to Sadayo Kawakami, his hair is naturally black. He has a noticeable widow's peak and his eyebrows are unusual in that he lacks the outer sides. He is shown to be muscular.
He wears his winter school uniform a bit modified. It consists of the standard black blazer with red buttons, unbuttoned to reveal a yellow T-shirt with a comic style star symbol and the word "ZOMG!" He has black pants with a red plaid pattern rolled up to reveal his ankles. His pants have black suspenders that hang down instead of being worn on his shoulders, white belt and white sneakers that have a rising sun flag motif. His summer school uniform is the same as his winter's, except his yellow T-shirt is replaced with a red one reading "NO MO RULES," he no longer wears his blazer and he now wears black and white high-top sneakers.
On his days off in winter, he wears a purple zip-up hoodie with red lining and the number "777" on the back, a T-black shirt with a yellow frowning face, black pants and yellow sneakers. In the summertime, he wears a yellow tank top that reads "ON UR MARK!" with red shoe prints, khaki shorts and blue sneakers with two diagonal lines on each side. In addition, he wears a chain necklace and white belt as accessories.
During Persona 5 Royal's third semester, Ryuji wears a bright blue puffer jacket with brown fur lining the hood over a red sweatshirt with a graffiti paint design, a camouflage-patterned scarf with black pants and blue sneakers. At school, he wears his uniform the same, but with his pants rolled down, a new red hoodie with a black skull and the word "NOBODY" on the front underneath the blazer, a blue T-shirt and purple sneakers.
Due to his injury, he walks and runs with a slight limp, and occasionally trips if he overexerts himself.
===Phantom Thief===
His Thief outfit consists of matching black jacket with elbow pads and what appears to be a metal vertebral column attached to its back, pants with knee pads and a double-sided holster belt with ammo on each side, a red ascot, combat boots, a pair of yellow gloves with metal knuckle protectors and a skull mask.
===Dancing in Starlight===
In Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight, he retains his Shujin Academy uniform except he wears a yellow shirt with a black "X" design and a red tattered scarf, and yellow and light blue sneakers with matching laces. He wears sunglasses on his head, a golden chain bracket on his right wrist and metal bracket on his left wrist.
===Strikers===
In Persona 5 Strikers, he wears a red tank-top with a gun and the text "GO !!" on the left breast, a dog-tag chain necklace, a silver watch, puffy black sweatpants that go down to his shins, a camouflage-pattern belt and yellow and gray high-top sneakers. While at the festivals, he wears a beige and a mask on the right side of his head. On the beach in Okinawa, he wears yellow-orange swim trunks with a palm tree design. In the spring, he wears a khaki coat.
==Personality==
thumb|250px|Ryuji English trailer.
Ryuji is known as a disruptive "problem student" at school whose bad behavior causes all sorts of trouble for the teachers. He is quite proud of his status as a self-proclaimed "troublemaker" and his rebellious, mischievous and disobedient nature are the perfect qualities to be a Phantom Thief. He is sometimes vulgar and aggressive, as shown in his early interactions with the protagonist, Yusuke Kitagawa and Makoto Niijima. He is also rather short-tempered, easily taking offense from even the slightest of comments, making him resort to trying to be threatening.
Though there is truth to his terrible temper, this causes a misunderstanding as there is more than meets the eye, however, as Ryuji is actually upbeat, lazy and even cowardly. Though much of it only comes from his appearance, mannerisms and even his language, his lax nature in itself makes him look worse at times. In certain Mementos dialogue, Ryuji will comment that in trying to keep his eyes peeled for intel, people have told him he looks "even more of an asshole than before."https://youtu.be/lmaC6ucLvB4?t=1052 Otherwise, even other party members may misunderstand him in rare cases and think he's being purely a jerk. Even then, from the beginning, Ryuji actively tries his best to be a better person, but overdoes it by showering others with unsolicited kindness.
That being said, Ryuji has a strong sense of morality and lives by his beliefs of right and wrong, putting it on high priority. As such, he sees through people's attempts at excusing their actions with sympathy, and is the first to untie the twisted context of right and wrong, delivering a clear picture. Outside of that, he also has a strong common sense and isn't afraid to help his peers with the truth, often making fun of the proud Morgana for his inabilities and shortcomings and even reprimanding the passionate Yusuke Kitagawa whenever he gets carried away in his pursuits for art at the cost of real life. He also has hands-on experience and knowledge of the city, introducing the protagonist to Untouchable and Ichigaya among other places.
In reality, his seemingly delinquent-like behavior is merely a coping mechanism for the loss of his reputation to Kamoshida's tyranny and his inability to continue becoming an athlete after the injury he suffered at Kamoshida's hand. Deep down, he is nothing more than a kind and altruistic boy. He deeply cares for his mother and takes fervent effort as an athlete to relieve her worries. He also reveals that his father was an alcoholic who beat him and his mother and then left, so his mother is the only family he has. When he tells the group about the aftermath of his confrontation with Kamoshida, he is broken when he admits that, following a meeting with the school authorities, she apologized to him for being a single mother and not giving him a strong father-figure in life. He even calls himself a "bad son," due to him messing up his efforts to make things easier for his mother.
He's generally friendly and on good terms with everyone in the Phantom Thieves (despite frequent bickering), particularly Ann, with whom he shares somewhat of a love-hate relationship. Morgana he has a brutal back-and-forth of the two constantly insulting each-other, but unlike the others, Morgana has caught up on the reality of Ryuji's disposition, and Morgana, while having thought Ryuji was a jerk at first, does vouch for his kindred soul and the changes he's underwent later on. Ryuji later becomes protective of Morgana when he's being made fun of in turn, though Morgana himself might not necessarily need his defense at that point.
Ryuji's upbeat and tempestuous, being strongly dedicated and passionate towards what he cares about. He is especially protective of his friends when they're in harm's way, being nothing less than provocative towards their instigators. Not only that, but he'd go as far as to risk his life recklessly, such as when he'd enter public traffic to call the party a cab, an inevitability during a moment of crisis. He's also quite quick to make friends and be forgiving with others, in spite of negative impressions. That being said, he's quite unforgiving of Goro Akechi for his actions, although he'd recognize that his head was twisted and manipulated by Masayoshi Shido.
However, Ryuji's generally aimless, and sometimes might have misguided motivations, making him do things that he would regret, even though he genuinely did it to stand up for himself or others. One of his greatest mistakes was standing up to Suguru Kamoshida, only leading to consequences for himself and his closest ones. This would persist once the group has become famous, causing him to lose himself in the group's popularity even if he was trying to pursue good intentions, a consequence that would not only hurt his friend Morgana, convincing him he doesn't belong in the team and leading him on a wild goose chase to prove himself, but the fame itself was a trap by the conspiracy that specifically exploited the group's lack of aim to frame them for a crime they didn't commit, a realization that Ryuji did not take well. Though Ryuji has a strong sense of honor, he is rather arrogant, dulling his talents in the process.
Regardless, Ryuji is supported by the protagonist as his voice of reason, at times calming Ryuji down or stopping him from acting where his altruism would only confuse or worsen the situation. Not to mention, the protagonist's own life being put in danger was what encouraged Ryuji to pursue his ideals, knowing full well the emergency of the situation. Even in his rut of despair following the downfall of the group's public support, the protagonist encourages Ryuji that he can change. The protagonist would also attentively follow Ryuji's progress of self-discovery, as far as listening to him over the phone during the beginning of Shido's Palace. Morgana in particular is also another one of Ryuji's friends and voices of reason, but he more specifically reminds him of his fallbacks and makes fun of him, making them prone to fighting.
The protagonist and Ryuji have an important relationship based around their partnership in reforming the world and pursuing their ideals. Both having been harmed by society, they maintain a clean bond, and Ryuji is especially respecting towards the protagonist as a partner and their leader. Their dynamic revolves around training together and sometimes goofing off.
Attracting girls was one of Ryuji's most prominent ulterior motives, as he'd admit that it was one of his fantasies and driving forces during his early years of running. In the midst of Shido's Palace, he'd hatch a plan to make the female members of the group dress up in swimsuits: although he'd claim it was to attract the attention of one of their targets, his cover was blown by what the other members described as a "scary" and "creepy" face.PERSONA 5 - Gameplay & Walkthrough Part 51 - Shido's Palace Pt. 2 (No Commentary), YouTube (SphericAlpha, May 30, 2017)
Ryuji's academic abilities, his Japanese included, are outright questionable at best and horrid at worst, as he more often than not, gets bad grades from exams, usually by oversleeping or refusing to study at all. He's so oblivious to the real world that he'd need Makoto Niijima to use little words to help him identify certain branches of the government. Aside from his threatening way of expressing himself sometimes, he also has poor taste, as the first calling card he designed was based off of references online, and even then failed to be convincing, as Ann described it sounded like "an idiot trying to be an adult." One common punchline is that in spite of Ryuji's desire to pick up girls, nobody would actually want to go out with him. In Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight, Ryuji's dancing style is also uninspired in the same fashion, as he often lifts popular street dance moves without any thought, such as the robot dance. Ryuji's frequent density causes him to be viewed as an idiot or even a little kid by his peers, Morgana and Ann in particular.https://youtu.be/lmaC6ucLvB4?t=343
Ryuji's rather fickle and follows what interests him the most. Although he has a passion for helping others, he very often gets distracted by his perverted interest in girls, which includes picking up girls. Ryuji was interested in "Victoria's Housekeeping," a maid service with adult undertones. He would also be convinced to join the school's social studies trip only upon hearing there'll be female actresses, making the excuse that he's taking up Morgana's suggestion to keep a low profile. This is also reinforced with Ann Takamaki, as he might stare at her in the Mona car while the group were traveling through the desert in Futaba's Palace. When Ann confronts him about this later, he doesn't even try to deny it, saying that "it was a great view."
Unfortunately, Ryuji eventually gets caught off guard by the conspiracy's deceit. It comes to a head after the Phantom Thieves are framed down by Shido, resulting in him breaking down and calling himself "an idiot" for his past behavior. He's able to eventually reconcile his weakness after talking with the protagonist and striving to become a better person after the protagonist makes him realize he can still change as a person.
Ryuji cares a great deal for the well-being of others around him, such as when he attempts to help end the abuse of the track team, even going as far as letting them beat him up in an attempt to air out their frustrations. He also has a strong sense of right and wrong. When Morgana warns him and the protagonist that stealing Kamoshida's treasure may result in his death, Ryuji is shocked and reluctant to take that risk, believing that him and the protagonist going around secretly doing whatever they wanted would make them no different from Kamoshida. He changes his mind after Shiho Suzui's attempted suicide, but even after it's done, he wonders if it really was for the best. After a chance encounter with Masayoshi Shido, however, Ryuji comes up with the idea to continue as the Phantom Thieves, in order to get rid of adults who have gone unpunished for so long and give courage to all those who need it. Furthermore, Ryuji is a rather forgiving person, as evident by his willingness to help out his former teammates on the track team despite them viewing him as a traitor, as well as being the first to voice the party's forgiveness to Makoto for recklessly getting the team blackmailed, despite having despised her up until then. He even tells Natsuhiko Nakanohara that being treated like dirt doesn't give one the right to do the same to them. In Strikers, Ryuji becomes one of Sophia's closest friends, and he came to care a lot about her, enough to give the mysterious voice in the Okinawa Jail a tongue lashing for having insulted Sophia.
Hobby-wise, apart from being on the track team, he also does muscle training. He can drink a 500mL bottle of carbonated water in one go which he did as training during his track and field club days. When he was active, he could also do 1000mL bottles. He is often impatient and has a habit of tapping the ground with his toes when he's bored, and prefers to get "straight to the point" during conversations. He claims he never reads, and his artbook profile claims he only reads manga. When it comes to food, he's particularly fond of ramen, to the point of being fussy about the flavor and texture of the noodles. Though not a cook by any means, Ryuji displays some cooking skills, as he mentions a recipe involving combining honey and sliced lemons as a way of restoring stamina, something his mother taught him.
==Profile==
===Persona 5===
Ryuji Sakamoto is a student of Shujin Academy and has known Ann Takamaki since middle school, though they were only acquaintances. Ryuji borrowed money from Ann in middle school so he could buy a stuffed dolphin for his mom from a school trip, but never paid her back, which Ann holds against him.
He originally came from a household with an abusive father, who eventually abandoned him and his mother. Later on, Ryuji got a great opportunity for his future and to ease his mother's burden by becoming a star athlete on the school's track team, where he managed to become its leader and earned fellow teammates Nakaoka, Takeishi and Ikeda's trust. The team was also on the forefront of Shujin's sports teams and one with a potential for going to internationals. However, during an unknown time prior to the game's events, Suguru Kamoshida came into the school and set up his tyranny against its students.
Ryuji's track team was one of the casualties because Kamoshida wanted his own volleyball team to be the only frontline sports team in the school, so he began telling everyone at Shujin about Ryuji's parents. This led to Ryuji attacking Kamoshida in a fit of anger, only for him to break Ryuji's leg and justify it as "self-defense." The conflict between Ryuji and Kamoshida caused the track team to disband, and the former members of his team alongside Kamoshida would label him as the track traitor due to his supposedly brash violence against Kamoshida leading to the team's disbandment. Since the team was already disbanded, they were also unable to participate in a track championship. Nakaoka and Takeishi also went to a fall-out on him since he led to the Track Team's disbanding, while Ikeda regrets being unable to stop Kamoshida as a senior, albeit not holding resentment unlike the former two.
====First Heist: Suguru Kamoshida====
Ryuji and the protagonist first meet after Kamoshida picks up Ann by car. He calls him a "pervy teacher" before approaching the protagonist in a threatening manner when he asks who Kamoshida is in fear of him ratting Ryuji out. When he realizes that the protagonist is a transfer student, he explains to him that Kamoshida is a bully who thinks that he is the King of Shujin, which he perceives as a "Castle." Courtesy to Ryuji accidentally inputting the keywords "Kamoshida," "Pervert Teacher" and "Castle" onto the Metaverse Navigator, it acts up, with seemingly no abnormalities. However, when the duo go ahead to Shujin, they are terrified when they find that their destination is a castle, instead of a school.
As soon as they enter, they are blocked by knights and trapped in a prison where Shadow Kamoshida orders them to be executed. Ryuji witnesses all of the events in total disbelief. He was nearly killed, only for the protagonist to awaken to his Persona and defeat his knights. Ryuji knocks away Kamoshida when he's about to threaten the protagonist afterwards and escapes alongside him, locking the door of the cell.
The duo later encounter Morgana, a mysterious cat-like creature, and free him from a cell. With his guidance, they manage to escape from the castle. When the two confront the real Kamoshida back in the school in the real world, however, the teacher has no idea what they are talking about. To make sure whether they were dreaming or not, Ryuji suggests they once again go to the Palace using the Metaverse Navigator, at which they succeed.
thumb|right|250px|Ryuji's Persona awakening.
The second time visiting the Palace, Ryuji wants to help the students trapped inside the dungeon cells and has Morgana guide him there, but when Morgana realizes his intents, he points out to him that the students were mere cognitions, and his phone does not work in the Metaverse, preventing him from taking photos of the students suffering from brutal "training." So instead, Ryuji tries to memorize the faces of the cognitive athletes, so he can interrogate them in the real world. Upon trying to escape, the party was blocked by Kamoshida at the entrance, and this time several Shadows taking the form of Bicorns defeat the protagonist and Morgana effortlessly. Shadow Kamoshida takes the opportunity to reveal his plan for the principal to invest in his volleyball team only and to gain admiration and submission from all the students of his school, but Ryuji was a great threat to him for drawing that attention. Therefore, he intentionally injured Ryuji's leg because he tried to attack and confront him for the unfavorable rumors of his family, giving him an excuse to disband the Track Team and label Ryuji as a track traitor. Kamoshida's true intention angers Ryuji deeply and his Shadow Self calls out to him, transforming into Captain Kidd and awakening his Persona for vengeance. Returning to the real world, Ryuji vows to expose Kamoshida's true self and becomes friends with the protagonist after both confide their backgrounds to each other.
Together with the protagonist, they try to get information about Kamoshida from other students, but everyone is too afraid to talk, even learning that the teachers, parents, and principal knows, but did not bother to speak up to Kamoshida. Morgana, in cat form, then approaches the two boys, suggesting they steal the source of Kamoshida's corrupt heart to make him confess his own crimes. However, when Morgana warns them that there is the risk that the real Kamoshida could suffer a mental shutdown and die, Ryuji hesitates and asks for time to think. However, not long afterward, Ann's friend, Shiho Suzui, attempts suicide on the school roof. When Ryuji and the protagonist heard from Yuuki Mishima that Kamoshida called Shiho a day before, the two realize that Kamoshida has sexually assaulted her. Ryuji angrily confronts Kamoshida about this, joined in with the protagonist and Mishima, resulting in Kamoshida's decision to expel the three upon the next board meeting.
Finally having enough with Kamoshida, Ryuji and the protagonist agrees with Morgana's suggestion to steal Kamoshida's treasure and make him confess his crimes. They later are joined by Ann who also wants to expose Kamoshida after hearing everything from Shiho. To agitate Shadow Kamoshida once they almost reach the treasure, Ryuji makes and attaches a flurry of calling cards on the school board under the name "Phantom Thieves of Hearts" that is addressed to Kamoshida, stating he will confess his crime soon. After Kamoshida confesses his crime in front of the whole student body, Ryuji, the protagonist and Mishima's expulsion is canceled, much to their relief.
With the case over, Ryuji and the others decide to celebrate at an expensive restaurant by using the money they got after selling Kamoshida's Treasure. At the restaurant, Ryuji, the protagonist and Morgana meet the same man who led to the protagonist's probation. The man acted in an incredibly arrogant fashion and didn't remember the protagonist, only to quickly get on Ryuji's nerves after one of his bodyguards rudely shoved them away when they were waiting for the elevator. This encounter makes Ryuji decide to continue working as Phantom Thieves to cleanse the corruption from corrupt adults' hearts. The protagonist, Ann and Morgana also agree with him, so they decide to form the Phantom Thieves in earnest.
====Third Heist: Junya Kaneshiro====
At the team's hot pot celebration at Café Leblanc, on Yusuke's request, Ryuji and the boys would talk about their pasts: Ryuji would confide about his guilt with the incident with Kamoshida, particularly with his mother: not only was she berated for her son's actions, back home instead she would apologize to him for being a "single mom."
Meanwhile, Ryuji and the others would encourage Morgana to be part of their group, who felt like he didn't fit it because he had no memories.
==== Fifth Heist: Kunikazu Okumura====
With the party's popularity on a new high, the massive excitement surrounding them would perk them up, but unfortunately, this would be near-fatal for the group, as they'd lose sight of their original goal for the sake of making a name for themselves. This is especially true for Ryuji, as he wanted his actions to be acknowledged.
After having helped Futaba recover from her social anxiety and brought her to Miura Beach, Ryuji would begin to compare Morgana to Futaba, deeming him unreliable in that beat.[NEXT SCENE] While Ryuji didn't mean any harm, that got under Morgana's skin, as he was burdened by his amnesia and not knowing why he existed, causing him to begin to compare himself to others.
Because of the current situation with the group, Ryuji and Morgana would start a fight due to the latter's insecurities, both accusing each-other of acting out of self-benefit: though Morgana's condescending and divisive towards their inaction, Ryuji tries to heal the divide, calling out Morgana that he's in it for himself like them. This would only provoke Morgana as it would simultaneously target his pride, and would go prove himself whilst also leaving the team. Although the rest of the party was worried about Morgana, Ryuji didn't think much of their fight, assuming Morgana would return instantly and he would fend off on his own while he was gone.
Ryuji, oblivious to Morgana's feelings, would hinder the rest of the party's attempts to retrieve Morgana. He would end up muddying the intent of their planned apology, as Ryuji thought he had to be accepting towards Morgana for being unreliable and not human, although Morgana wanted to be respected rather than accepted, and he interpreted his words, mistake or not, as disregarding of the value of what he does and who he is. That remark would only upset Morgana and make their argument worse than it already is.For context, Ryuji blamed Morgana for being inconsiderate as the party waited a long time to meet him and retrieve him, not realizing that Morgana was not only unaware of that, but has also been enraged because of Ryuji alone.
The whole conflict is only left behind once he finds Haru being harassed by her abusive fiance in a back alley, but more importantly a hurt Morgana near a wall, making Ryuji stand up for both of them.【ペルソナ5R】怪盗団の先導役『モルガナ(魔術師)』全コープランクイベント集【ネタバレあり】 (28:00), YouTube (Ryu, Dec 9, 2019)てめえ、俺の仲間に何してる！？* In the Japanese version, Ryuji refers to Morgana and Haru in plural, also singular possessive ("my friends," rather than "our friend.")* Either way, Ryuji will turn to look at Morgana like the others, followed by a double exclamation mark, and Ryuji's aforementioned remark.* Ryuji's reaction (Shocked to see Morgana) and Sugimura's response (Haru and the "lover's quarrel") contradict. One scenario is that Sugimura explains the harm he's caused Morgana. After warding off Haru's fiance, upon Morgana's request, Ryuji and the protagonist agree to give Haru a place to rest, settling their animosity.
After helping Morgana return back home and come to terms with his true feelings for the group, Ryuji would also become more appreciative, cooperative and trusting towards Morgana, such as when he would help them escape the exploding spaceport via transforming into a bus. Other instances include being guided to the Treasure by Morgana, as well as when he helps a majority of the party escape from Okumura's trap.
In spite of finding another reason to tackle their next target voted by public majority, Kunikazu Okumura, specifically by saving his daughter Haru, the Phantom Thieves' reception was still on Ryuji's mind and would put a heavy emphasis on their popularity as Phantom Thieves. This would especially backfire on him and the group as a whole, however, as the conspiracy exploited their popularity, and even manipulated the polling on the Phan-site, only to bait them into taking down a target that they'd later frame for their murder.
====Sixth Heist: Sae Niijima====
With the Phantom Thieves in a dangerous spot, as well as Goro Akechi blackmailing them into cooperating with him on his terms, the rest of the group, Ryuji especially, would realize how wrong and surreal their situation is. In despair, Ryuji would yell in desperation, but in the midst would realize that he's lost sight of his original goal as a Phantom Thief, like the other members of the team.
Ryuji's more considerate side would come back, as he considered apologizing to Futaba and Haru as his aggressive response might've scared them. Not only that, but aside from checking on the Phan-site for intel, Ryuji would become indifferent towards their hate and popularity as a whole.
Ryuji's new side of his personality helped him stay invested in the party's plan to deceive Akechi, who's a mole that wants to assassinate the protagonist, which would force the group to operate in the shadows, with the public having thought that the group's leader has died and is hence no longer active. Morgana would later joke that it'd be very difficult for Ryuji to keep quiet about their plan.
====Seventh Heist: Masayoshi Shido====
After identifying the mastermind of the mental shutdowns, Masayoshi Shido, Ryuji's resolve to help the weak has completely returned, and thinks about nothing more than his duty to help them.
After the Phantom Thieves successfully stole Shido's heart in his Palace, Shido in the real world took a medicine given by the Conspiracy as a last ditch attempt of killing the Thieves by making his Palace collapse. With the team unable to exit the Palace, Ryuji decides to risk his life by running up to the crane carrying a lifeboat to help the team escape. While the Thieves were able to get onto the lifeboat and escape, Ryuji is still hanging onto the ladder of the crane and is unable to reach them on time before Shido's ship explodes, seemingly taking Ryuji with it, much to the team’s distress and grief.
Back in the real world, the Thieves succeeded in capturing Shido's treasure (a legislator's pin), but they had already lost a valuable member of their team. While they mourn their friend, Ryuji surprisingly appears alive and well (in reality, he was blasted out of the collapsing Palace and landed on the grass afterwards), but much to the girls' anger, accidentally ruins the moment by thoughtlessly making fun of Ann's crying, not knowing why his friends are sad. The girls then beat up Ryuji and leave him near the Diet Building while the team leaves to eat, giving him no credit for his near-sacrifice. Ironically, Morgana was the only one who remembered Ryuji's heroic actions.
===Royal===
Ryuji's role is largely the same as he in Persona 5, though he and Yusuke have an additional scene of hanging out with the protagonist during a summer fair on July 17th.
====Taking Back Reality====
On New Year, Ryuji's leg has seemingly never been broken in the first place, and the track team is functioning normally, with him taking the lead and becoming a popular figure among his fellow athletes. This was an alternate reality, however, created by Takuto Maruki, whom Ryuji told that he wanted to restore the track team in a counseling session. In this reality, Kamoshida never abused anyone, thus he never broke Ryuji's leg nor disbanded the track team. Ryuji can be met near the Shujin gates after the protagonist and Akechi meet Maruki in his palace for the first time. After being talked to, he decides with the other thieves during the 9th of January to deny Maruki's reality, returning both his leg and the track team to the state they were previously.
On the same day, when the protagonist and Akechi are nearly defeated by a berserk Cendrillon that attacks them due to the intense grief and denial of Sumire Yoshizawa, Ryuji blocks the fatal attack for the two boys, and the rest of the Phantom Thieves who vowed to help the protagonist after being complacent for so long move in behind him, giving the group a much needed boost in numbers, allowing Cendrillon to be defeated and Sumire to be rescued.
If the protagonist has completed his confidant, Ryuji will ask him to go to his room for a talk. He thoroughly apologizes that he went along with Maruki's ideal reality without question, which betrays his promise that he would protect the protagonist from danger no matter what, which he had made after the protagonist helped him from issues with Kamoshida and Yamaguchi. He punishes himself by doing as many squats as he can until the protagonist tells him to stop, telling him that it's pointless. He then stated while he wished for his track team legacy to continue and he might indeed have a better life in Maruki's reality, his past of Kamoshida's hatred, turning into a delinquent, nearing expulsion and his conflict with Nakaoka and Takeishi are still a part of him and he can't simply throw this past away. Realizing this, Seiten Taisei and Captain Kidd evolve into William.
If the protagonist accepts any of Maruki's deals to overwrite the current reality with his, Ryuji will be seen trying to swallow an entire during the 3rd of February. On the 15th of March, he will attend Haru and Makoto's graduation. He is last seen going to a competition in high spirits with his fellow track team members at the credits, then having fun at Café Leblanc alongside the rest of the former Phantom Thieves in the final post-credits end card.
After Maruki's defeat and restoration of their original reality, Ryuji would reflect upon the events that transpired and call for a meeting with the Phantom Thieves and Sojiro at Leblanc a few weeks after the protagonist's release from prison. Wanting everyone he owed to listen, Ryuji was the first of the group to announce that he plans to move away in April to live closer to a physical rehabilitation facility to get his leg healed in order to start running competitively again. After everyone revealed their own plans for the future, they agreed to remain connected even after going their separate ways.
Some time after the group helped the protagonist evade government pursuers from following him on the day of his departure from Tokyo (with the assistance of the reformed Maruki who works as a taxi driver), Ryuji returns to the shoe store he was browsing on the day the protagonist faked his death, to buy a new pair of running shoes, moving forward on his chosen path.
====Confidant====
:To check his Confidant dialogue options and skills, see Confidant/Ryuji Sakamoto
Ryuji's Confidant relationship is unlocked automatically on April 12th but his first Confidant ability is only obtained at rank 2. Maxing this Confidant makes Captain Kidd evolve into Seiten Taisei and unlocks the fusion of Chi You.
Ryuji's Follow Up attack, granted at Confidant rank 3, is a strong strike to a single target which is a guaranteed critical hit. However, the high damage is mitigated due to the fact that it only strikes a single target.
Ryuji's Instant Kill ability, granted at Confidant rank 7, triggers when the protagonist ambushes a Shadow group which consists of Shadows at least 10 levels lower than the protagonist. The battle is skipped, earning the protagonist a free Persona based on the possible enemies in that mob, but also denying Experience, money and items. The protagonist will also be unable to gain the free Persona if his stock is full or if he possesses a copy of it. While this is convenient in backtracking through earlier parts of Mementos, it's also not conducive for grinding. Unless the protagonist has been grinding extensively (especially by hunting the Reaper) this ability should not be an issue in story-relevant Palaces.
Ryuji's Confidant revolves around his resolve to help reestablish the track club after Kamoshida disbanded it. One day while training, he faces Nakaoka and Takeishi who are still angry at Ryuji for getting into a fight with Kamoshida. Rejected by his former teammates, they go to train at Protein Lovers where they meet his alumni Ikeda who had joined the university track team despite how Kamoshida had no intentions of writing their letter of recommendation and used Ryuji punching Kamoshida as the excuse while letting word slip that the team is being reinstated as Shujin's Volleyball team is in turmoil since the incident with Kamoshida came to light but learn that Yamaguchi, one of Kamoshida's supporters is the new coach despite lacking any credentials and rampant alcoholism which raises Ryuji's concern that the team will be doomed to repeat the same mistakes he did with Kamoshida.
While training one day, he runs into Takeishi accusing Nakaoka for exposing their personal lives to Kamoshida in the hopes for a scholarship. He kicks Nakaoka off the team after Nakaoka confesses to being responsible for Ryuji's suffering. However, Ryuji knew that after all the suffering he has been through, he would have remained an obedient tool to Kamoshida's false promises and made the resolve to get the team to abandon Yamaguchi as the coach by spying on him with the protagonist's help. Eventually, he learns that Yamaguchi indeed doesn't care about the team and wants only the attention and fame as the protagonist records their conversation one day at a restaurant.
There, he reveals his intentions to play the role of a sympathetic teacher who helped save the Track Team after Kamoshida's actions. He would have a coach do the actual work while he reaped the rewards. He also ensured Nakaoka's expulsion from the team after subtly informing Takeishi about Kamoshida learning about their darkest secrets and using him as a puppet to keep the others in line. With the information recorded, Ryuji realized the importance of relying on others to succeed and decided to help the team confront Yamaguchi. 
Faced with the incriminating truth, Takeishi and Nakaoka come to terms with Ryuji who stresses the importance of relying on one another and being independent from the demands of others. Shortly after, Takeishi and the Track Team makes the decision to practice without relying on Yamaguchi, involving the PTA to stop Yamaguchi, and are able to rehire the old coach. Ryuji declines their offer to rejoin the team, promising to give his all as a Phantom Thief and support the protagonist for all that he has done. His newfound resolve causes Captain Kidd to transform into Seiten Taisei.
Ryuji's farewell gift after maxing his Confidant is a Sports Watch, allowing Ryuji the ability to use Harisen Recovery from the beginning in New Game+ once the Confidant has been established.
=== Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers ===
Ryuji is first seen at the subway with the protagonist, Morgana, Ann and Yusuke. They transform into their Phantom Thief outfits and enter the Mementos.
After discussing with the group, Ann and Ryuji talk loudly at a restaurant and lure one of the members of the criminal gang to Café Leblanc.
Later, he engages in battle with Kazuya Makigami directly and changes his heart.
===Persona 5 The Animation===
Ryuji's role is relatively the same as in the game. However, Ryuji's behavior would be changed to better reflect his supportive nature.
In Episode 20, "My Name is Beauty Thief!", summarizing the group's attempt at looking for Morgana after his fight with Ryuji, Ryuji would instead be more worried about Morgana: he would attempt to apologize to him in Mementos, only striking a nerve on accident by insisting he "won't call him useless anymore," and after the group's taken home an injured Morgana, he would lend a first aid kit, rushing to bring it in and yelling inappropriately, signifying how worried he is for Morgana.
===Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth===
Ryuji and his team are stranded in a new world, where they meet Kamoshidaman and powerful Shadows known as F.O.Es. Being outmatched, the Phantom Thieves retreat and escape to the Cinema, but Makoto Niijima and Haru Okumura are left behind and captured. They eventually save them with a new teammate, a girl from Persona 3 Portable.
As they continue to venture through the movie worlds, they encounter new allies: the Investigation Team and SEES. Ryuji learns to use unison attacks from completing side quests, which he can use together with Kanji Tatsumi through their bonding, Junpei Iori and Yosuke Hanamura through their common friendships with their respective leaders, and Morgana, Ann Takamaki and Ken Amada through training the boy the ways of being a phantom thief.
After the enemy is defeated, everyone returns to their own worlds. Their memories of the event are erased. Ryuji is last seen sitting in a movie theater with his friends about to watch the premiere of a new movie.
===Persona 5 Strikers===
Ryuji is one of the Phantom Thief members who return to Yongen-Jaya for summer vacation. He barely got past his final terms with three failed subjects. It's unclear if he moved away or not by the events of the game.
===Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight===
Ryuji appears as a playable character and stars in the songs "Keeper of Lust," one of the battle themes, and "Blooming Villain" (ATLUS Konishi remix).
Ryuji’s dance style is very energetic and fun, though not necessarily good. He uses his legs a lot, as if to overcompensate for his knee injury in the real world, and tries to pump up an invisible audience. He also incorporates hip-hop dance moves with little to no rhyme or reason, such as the Whip and the . He starts his performance with what seems to be a pre-workout, which just so happens to be on beat.
His FEVERs are only slightly different, with him instead hyping up the person who joins him.
==Etymology ==
Ryuji's name references (坂本 龍馬) from the period, which is supported by his Confidant subplot which is an allusion to the . The brother of lower samurai Toranoshin Ikeda (池田 寅之進) was killed by a higher samurai for possibly bumping into him. Informed by the witness, Ikeda quickly arrived at the scene and killed the two superiors for revenge. This serial murder stoked the tension between the lower and higher samurai the next day. Sakamoto, as a fellow lower samurai, helped mediate, but things only settled down after Ikeda performed honor suicide by seppuku and his family's salary was confiscated. The superiors' families received virtually no punishment for the initial killing. The unequal treatments led to desertion of many lower samurai, including Sakamoto and his comrade (中岡 慎太郎), from their serving clans who were disappointed by their higher-ups' suppression.
==In Other Languages==
Language 	Titles 	Titles
Japanese 	坂本 竜司 (Sakamoto Ryūji) 	スカル (Sukaru)
Korean 	사카모토 류지 (Sakamoto Ryuji) 	스컬 (Seukeol)
Traditional Chinese	坂本 龍司 (Bǎnběn Lóngsī) 	SKULL
==Trivia==
*In the Japanese version, Skull self-proclaims "Phantom Thieves' Captain Kirikomi" which is localized as "Charge Commander." "Captain Kirikomi" may be a reference to the card from the series. "" either refers to curing fish slices from Hokkaido regional cuisine, or in ship-to-ship combat (in keeping with Captain Kidd's privateer background), referring to the grappling hooks for closing the distance between the ships, allowing ship crews to charge into the enemy’s ship for melee combat.
*Just like with Makoto Niijima and Goro Akechi before, the official twitter account for the Persona series posted a "Happy Birthday" message for Ryuji on July 3, 2017 JST.
* Pointed out by the same Twitter account, Ryuji's birthday is on Wave Day , a Japanese anniversary. The origin of Wave Day comes from the pronunciation of the numbers and the word "wave" combined , forming 7/3. (な (7) み (3))そういえば今日7/3は波（なみ）の日でもあるらしい。何だかリュージっぽい誕生日だよな。みんな、これからもよろしく頼むぜ！ #ペルソナ5 #坂本竜司 @p_kouhou (July 3rd, 2017)
*Only in the English version, after escaping Kaneshiro's Palace, Ryuji comments in the gang's group chat "I'm a Phantom, on a steel horse I ride." This is a reference to Bon Jovi's "Wanted Dead or Alive" from the 1986 album "" to which Makoto follows up with continual reference by stating that she is not wanted.
**In the Japanese version, this conversation is completely different with Ryuji stating he wants to drive a stolen bike and Makoto instantly denying hers to be stolen.
*According to an interview from the Persona 5 Royal Official Complete Guide, the cutscene where Ryuji single-handedly saves the protagonist and Akechi from Cendrillon's final attack was added very late into development. The producer remarked on how the design teams were begging him to let them add that to the scene, and when he played it for himself, he was shocked at how "cool" Ryuji looked during it.
*Ryuji has been involved in several localization changes in the series:
**Ryuji's civilian shoes are censored in the Chinese and Korean versions of the games, due to containing the .Sensitive Imagery Removed from Ryuji's Shoes in the Korean Version of Persona 5 @Persona_Central (May 24th, 2017) The symbol is a sensitive issue in many other Asian countries when they suffered from Japan's invasion during World War II. Atlus removed it out of courtesy when the issue was brought up.
***These changes would be applied globally in the 2022 remasters of Persona 5 Royal.
***The rising sun symbol is also removed from the official artwork used for his Spirit in all versions of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
**In the English version of Persona 5 Royal, Ryuji's encounter with Angel and Julian, who kidnap Ryuji under sexual pretenses in Persona 5, has been altered so they take him away to instead mentor him in the world of .
**Ryuji's artwork on the Persona 5 Strikers box art differs between the Japanese and Western versions: it was changed from him being punched in the face by a Shadow in the former, into only falling down wielding his weapon, and the Shadow grabbing him by the ascot. This is because ESRB does not allow video game box arts to depict violent blows to the head.Advertising Principles and Guidelines, esrb.org
***This applies only to the box art though, as the image in the sound room in the Persona 5 Strikers Bonus Content app still shows Ryuji getting punched in the face.
* In the English version of Persona 5 Strikers, Ryuji has a voiced line where he says "fuck." It marks the first time in which he's said it in a cutscene, though the word also appears in a text box during Futaba's Palace in Persona 5. This was changed in Royal.Reminder that Ryuji does, in fact, say fuck. Reddit.com. u/denfire321 (February 19th, 2019)
** According to Max Mittelman, the producer for Royal changed the line on the spot when the scene was being voiced.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHAcTwNCwYk
===Appearances in Other Media===
Title 	Details 	Date 	External Links
Chain Chronicle 	Collaboration event* *Skull, Warrior class, 4-star 	January 19th, 2017 - January 31st, 2017. 	Article on Chain Chronicle Wiki
 	* Color swap for Yosuke Hanamura 	* May 31, 2018 (Japan)* June 5, 2018 (North America)* June 22, 2018 (Europe) 	
 	Collaboration event* Skull, NPC. 	June 18th, 2018 - June 29th, 2018Persona 5: Thievery in Blue. Granblue Fantasy Wiki. 	Article on Granblue Fantasy Wiki
 	Collaboration event for Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth* Attack Type, 6-star 	December 3rd, 2018Persona 3, 4, 5 Popular Scene Vote Results, Persona Q2 Line Stamps Announced, Persona Q2 x Puyo Puyo!! Quest Collaboration. Persona Central (Reggy, November 24th, 2018)	Article in Puyo Nexus
Catherine: Full Body 	DLC*NPC 	* February 14, 2019 (Japan)* September 3, 2019 (Western countries & Europe) 	
Kyoutou Kotoba RPG 	Collaboration event*Ryuji (Kotodaman); Normal (5-star), Phantom Thief (6-star) 	March 5th, 2019 - March 28th, 2019Persona 5 x Kyoutou Kotoba RPG: Kotodaman Collaboration Trailer, Starts on March 5, 2019. Persona Central (Reggy, March 4th, 2019) 	
 	Cameo during Joker's Final Smash and MementosPrimary Spirit (Advanced Class, Shield type)	Part of the Joker DLC: April 17th, 2019 	Article on SmashWiki
Identity V 	First collaboration event* Ryuji Sakamoto & SKULL skins for Forward 	* August 8th, 2019 - August 29th, 2019Persona 5 x Identity V Collaboration Begins on August 8, 2019. Persona Central (Reggy, August 5th, 2019) 	
Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag 	Collaboration event* Skull, Strike type, Light element, 6-star 	February 17th, 2020 - March 10th, 2020
Persona 5 Royal x Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag Collaboration to Start on February 17, 2020. Persona Central (Reggy, February 13, 2020) 	
Sword Art Online: Integral Factor	Collaboration event* Skull, NPC
*Skull outfit for avatar
*Skull skin for 	February 28th, 2020 - March 10th, 2020 	
Another Eden 	Collaboration* Playable character 	November 23th, 2020 Bound Wills and the Hollow Puppeteer Promises, Vows, and Rings. Another Eden wiki. 	Article in Another Eden Wiki
==References==
Category:Persona 5 The Animation Characters
Category:Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight Characters
Category:Persona 5 Allies
Category:Persona Q2 Characters
Category:Persona Q2 Allies
Category:Chariot Arcana
Category:Persona 5 Royal Characters
Category:Persona 5 Strikers Characters
Category:Persona 5 Strikers Allies
Category:Persona 5: The Phantom X Characters
Category:Persona users
Category:Persona 5 Tactica Characters
Category:Persona 5 Tactica Allies