Persona: World And Judgement

Persona: World And Judgement is a fanfiction based on the stories of Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES and Persona 4: Golden, by the author The-Final-Fidelity. It was first published on December 4th, 2011 and is still a work in progress (the last update was on January 23rd, 2016). The story acts as the third instalment of the fanfiction trilogy that the author has produced that focuses on the crossover between the third and fourth instalments of the original frachise; the first being Persona: His Sapphire Eyes and the second being Persona: Spirits In Pixels.
==Plot==
 WARNING: This article contains spoilers!
The story is set in August-time, 2012, taking place a day after Persona: Spirits In Pixels. After rescuing Mitsuru Kirijo from the TV World and making contact with her, the Investigation Team set their course for Iwatodai, where they hope to aid S.E.E.S in their mission to find the missing body of Minato Arisato. However, along the way, the newly-formed group are faced with two new enemies; boys whose identities are shrouded in mystery and whose abilities come from the TV World.
Alongside this, the team are faced with daily broadcasts from the Midnight Channel, revealing silhouettes that resemble people from their past; each of them crafted from their own desires. Throughout the story, the team have to juggle their investigation while finding out why the Midnight Channel returned, as well as what the two culprits are up to. To make matters worse though, the Dark Hour and Tartarus  mysteriously returns as well.
==Lead/Major Characters/Protagonists==
See also: List of Persona 3 characters; List of Persona 4 characters
In Persona: World And Judgement, the story consists of a crossover between the third and fourth instalments of the original series, thus the lead characters and some of the minor characters are present from both games and collaborate with each other.
Yu Narukami 	
The leader of the Investigation Team, an exceptional user of the Wild Card ability and nephew to Ryotaro Dojima, a police detective of the Inaba Police Department. He originally came from the city but moved to the countryside due to his parents' oversees work. He has since made good friends with the current members of the team from Inaba, as well as with the residents of the Velvet Room. He is a strong-willed individual who, although may seem somewhat quiet at times, is caring and protective of others, including those who are very close to him. Now, he is the leader of the collaborated team between the Investigation Team and S.E.E.S, ensuring the safety and capability of the group. He is mostly known by the group as a very powerful human being, especially with the amount of Personae and experience he has at his disposal.
Yosuke Hanamura	Yu Narukami's right-hand man, best friend, and a somewhat clumsy, but very intelligent young man. He used to be somewhat close to Saki Konishi and even sought for a relationship with her. But after her passing, he learnt the truth of what she felt towards him and caused his Shadow to be born as a result. Since then though, he has fought with the Investigation Team through thick and thin. And now, he draws his attention to Chie Satonaka after discovering a secret from her.
Chie Satonaka 	
A young girl influenced by kung-fu movies and is constantly arguing with Yosuke Hanamura. She is a good friend of Yukiko Amagi's and oftentimes tries to help her when she is in crisis; she wishes to do this for everyone else as well, and even wants to pursue a career in police work in the future. She usually has a bone to pick with Yosuke, but due to the events when the Investigation Team were battling against Mitsuru Kirijo's Shadow, her feelings for him had started to grow.
Yukiko Amagi 	Best friend of Chie Satonaka and the next person to inherit the Amagi Inn, though not quite the expert in the field of cooking. She is a very polite and courteous young girl, and she is considered by some to be very mature for her age, even though she has an odd sense of humour and has multiple laughing fits at unusually unfunny moments. She used to be a very confined person before opening up to a more liberal attitude and because of this, she became good friends with the people of the Investigation Team as well as S.E.E.S.
Rise Kujikawa 	A wonderful girlfriend to Yu Narukami, a happy-go-lucky individual and a helpful tactical supporter in the battlefield. She may be globally known as Risette, and she may be popular with the boys as well as having a cheeky side to herself, but she is very caring of her friends and doesn't let fame faze her from who her real peers are. She is a bright and fun character to be around, and is very protective around Yu Narukami, be it if someone else is flirting with him or if he was down in a fight. However, recently she has had to sort things with Marie, who now has feelings for Yu.
Naoto Shirogane	The team's most intelligent detective and has quite a masculine disposition, but a genius nonetheless. Her age tends to contradict with the vast amount of knowledge she has, but she is a great addition to the team; she is very helpful with the theoretical side of the investigation and could potentially surpass any police detective's intellect. She is quite conscious of her own body, especially if she feels like she is revealing too much. However, she can solve any problem, no matter how big or small.
Kanji Tatsumi 	The image of a brute from the outside, but truthfully a soft and friendly person on the inside. He was once a violent individual who only committed acts such as assault and brawling on others, such as the infamous biker gang, only to make others happy; so that he could stop the disturbance those people caused. He was occassionally picked on for his sexuality, mostly by Yosuke Hanamura, and is very skilled in tailoring for his family-run textiles shop. He may be muscular and a very strong young man, but he has feminine interests and doesn't care about what anyone thinks of it.
Teddie 	A half-bear, half-human who loves to take in the outside experience of the real world. He can be a very clumsy individual, both in his actions and in the way he thinks, and can sometimes come to conclusions before any real proof was given. But he is considered as the comic relief of the group and can cheer anyone up just with his personality. He is known for his distasteful bear puns and humourous moments that he never intentionally gives thought to, but he's a good all-round teammate and brings an energetic feel to the party.
Marie 	Other known as Mariko Kusumi, or more formally known as Kusumi-No-Okami. She is a resident of the Velvet Room, but most importantly, a pawn of Ameno-Sagiri. She initially materialised into the world for the purposes of absorbing the fog if Ameno-Sagiri was ever to be defeated. Now, however, she works as a weather forecaster who, not only forecasts the weather but decides it as well, due to her powers that were bestowed upon her after her defeat as Kusumi-No-Okami - she would've originally disappeared upon defeat, but instead was allowed to exist as a human being. Though, recent events have seen her to lose these powers, thus motivating her to seek for a reason. But in the chaos, she finds her way back to the Investigation Team along with S.E.E.S, and her open feelings for Yu are instantly made clear, which irks Rise greatly.
Yukari Takeba 	
A regular archery team member who once held a very strong bond with Minato Arisato while he was alive. She is a confident and popular girl, but due to the recent events of Minato's body being stolen, she struggles to cope with everyday life as well as her own emotions. This has also affected her in battle, but she always tries her hardest to achieve her goals. She doesn't like to reveal her true feelings, but relies on others when she needs it most.
Junpei Iori 	
The clown of the group, the school slacker, and was a good friend to Minato Arisato, but humourous nontheless. He is usually light-hearted and full of energy; he used to take a self-centered apprach to himself, but due to the death of Chidori Yoshino, the traumatic event had made him come out stronger, putting people first along with an increasing value in his own life.
Mitsuru Kirijo 	
The head of the Kirijo Group, a well-organised teammate and the first Persona-user to join S.E.E.S. As usual, Mitsuru oversees the plans and operations of the group as well as the safety of others alongside her longtime friend, Akihiko Sanada; she also works closely with Detective Kurosawa. Recent evetns have made her aware of Yukari's wellbeing along with the amount of strain that had been placed upon her and tries to console her whenever she can.
Akihiko Sanada 	
Former captain of the boxing team and now a Trainee Police Officer working for the Ayanagi Police Department. He focuses mainly on training and becoming stronger due to his dark past which involved the death of his sister, Miki and the demise of Shinjiro Aragaki. He now brings his own detective skills to the investigation, determined to find the location of Minato's body.
Fuuka Yamagishi	
A slightly timid girl who works uncannily well with technology and provides a strong tactical support for the group when in battle. Like Rise Kujikawa, she can scan wide areas for specific objects or individuals but with a slightly more experienced power. Her cooking isn't up to scratch, but she is always willing to help out other members and friends of the team.
Aigis 	
The 7th Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon and a humanoid, but with a kind heart and undoubtable human qualities. She is Yukari's best friend and always looks out for her, especially after recent occurences. Her initial goal was to be by Minato's side and to protect him. But when he passed away, her purpose in life changed to something much greater; to live. She is the last one of her model, with all other units of her design being destroyed. She was also the one who contained Death within Minato in 1999 when he was nearby when she couldn't defeat it, which was the reason why Minato's Wild Card ability was amplified.
Ken Amada 	
A short but strong child who, after losing his mother to Shinjiro Aragaki's berserked Persona, had to learn about the grown-up world the hard way. Now in Junior High School, he aids the team in battle, using his trustied spear to compensate for his size. For a boy his age, he has a good grasp of how to find and solve problems and tries to contribute to the investigation whenever he can.
Koromaru 	
Man's best friend and a very loyal companion to the group. Even though he is only a small canine, he is very capable in battle and has an intelligent mind that makes him known of who his friend and foe is. He can very empathetic towards others who are feeling unhappy or depressed. Fortunately, his presence can cheer anyone up.
Minato Arisato 	Former group leader of S.E.E.S, a past user of the Wild Card, and the only known user of the Universe Arcana . He passed away in the early days of March, 2010 due to his sacrificial act of becoming the Great Seal that now barricades the doors between Erebus and Nyx so that he can prevent the Fall from happening again. The whereabouts of his body is unknown and becomes the very heart of the investigation that the Investigation Team and S.E.E.S now undergo. He was well known for his stoic appearance and his unconditional friendliness towards the people who were around him, including those who resided in the Velvet Room.
==Supporting/Minor Characters==
See also: List of Persona 3 characters; List of Persona 4 characters
Again, the minor and supporting characters in the story come from both original games and crossover with one another.
Igor	A mysterious old man with a large nose, the head of the Velvet Room, and master to Elizabeth and Margaret, as well as being a former servant to Philemon. Not much is known about who he is apart from a being who ensures the guest chosen by the Wild Card that they abide by their contracts, and who aids his guests in everything he can, from explaining the power of Persona to actually fusing them. He has been a great deal of help to every guest that he has had; all of them being in order; Naoya Tōdō, Tatsuya Suou, Minato Arisato, and Yu Narukami.
Elizabeth	
A usually cheerful servant to Igor and though she is quite the oddball at times, she can be a great deal of help to her guests. She has helped Minato Arisato with his journey as well as his Wild Card ability, and she is responsible for storing the Personae he collects in the Compendium. She is a very powerful individual, using the Compendium and draw out multiple Personae from her psyche in the same way Minato can, but without the use of the Wild Card ability. She has fought against Minato as a means of learning the true power of the ability, and eventually did when she was defeated. Recently, she had hoped to use her power to free his soul from the Great Seal, but to no avail, which then brought her back to the Velvet Room and asking Yu Narukami for his help since he is also a wielder of the Wild Card, and that he is conducting an investigation concerning the whereabouts of his body. Her sister, Margaret, is also at her level of astounding power.
Margaret	A somewhat stern and sincere individual compared to her sister, Elizabeth, but she is very sympathising with her guests, the only one being Yu Narukami. She has aided him with his own journey and provided him with information and help with the investigation of the murders behind the Midnight Channel. Like Elizabeth, Margaret is also responsible for recording and storing Yu's Personae in the Compendium and has also fought against him to experience the true power of the Wild Card without using the power herself in battle. Her power matches her sister's, but could not defeat Yu Narukami in battle. She has also fought against Minato Arisato once during the 'Vision Quest' where Minato would have to undergo several challenges before facing her.
Detective Kurosawa	
Iwatodai Police Department's recently-promoted police detective and somewhat of a colleague to Mitsuru Kirijo and Akihiko Sanada. He is a very trustworthy detective and is even willing to trust anyone if they are in connections with Mitsuru or Akihiko. He had trusted S.E.E.S once before when the Dark Hour was introduced along with the continuous string of Apathy Syndrome cases that had come from it. Now he's working on the Minato Case, trying to find the location of Minato's body as well as attempting to find the ones who were responsible for the theft. However, he does know that S.E.E.S and the Investigation Team are also working on the same case, and he is confident that their abilities will reach a better conclusion than the police department has.
Ryotaro Dojima	
Uncle to Yu Narukami, a single father to Nanako Dojima , and a police detective for the Inaba Police Department. He lost his wife a few years ago due to a hit-and-run crime that involved her death, and ever since, he had been investigating the case in the hope that he will one day get justice. He worked with Tohru Adachi, who was his assistant, but eventually learned with the Investigation Team that he was actually the true culprit behind the mysterious murders. He had nearly lost Nanako to Taro Namatame's act of 'saving' her by putting her into the TV, unaware of the true nature of the TV world. But after her recovery, he decided to work harder as a parent as well as a detective. Now, he is also involved with the Minato Case, moving to Iwatodai with Nanako temporarily until the case has been closed. He still has no knowledge of the TV world or the power of Persona, so he is someone everyone needs to be careful around.
Nanako Dojima	The little cousin to Yu Narukami, daughter to Ryotaro Dojima and a girl quite mature for her age. She is a sweet, bright and all-loving individual who could brighten anyone's day just by her presence. She was very shy towards Yu Narukami and his friends at first, but then became outgoing and almost the center of attention when she is around them. She nearly lost her life to Namatame's Shadow, but soon recovered after having her heart completely stop for a long duration of time. But now, she is alive and well, and she has had to move with her father to Iwatodai where she is taken care of by the people of S.E.E.S and the Investigation Team.
Tohru Adachi	
A person unaccepting of the harshness of reality, the true culprit behind the string of murders in Inaba, and someone considered to be the complete polar opposite of Yu Narukami. At first, he was Ryotaro Dojima's assistant detective, putting on a clumsy personality to cover up his true antagonistic disposition. But when his true intentions were finally revealed, he retreated to the TV world where his subconcious created a dungeon called Magatsu Inaba. He was not only capable of wielding a Persona of the Jester Arcana called Magatsu-Izanagi, a corrupted version of Yu Narukami's Izanagi, but he has also harboured Ameno-Sagiri, the one responsible for the fog that shrouded Inaba as well as being the god of fog. Now though, he is behind bars back at the Iwatodai Police Station. But when Yu gives him a call, he reveals that Ameno-Sagiri is still at large and that someone just like him will be his next vessel.
Miki Sanada	Akihiko Sanada's younger sister. She, Akihiko and Shinjiro Aragaki were friends in an orphanage, but as far as we know, there is not a lot left to say about her past. She passed away when they were just kids; her life was taken by a fire that mysteriously started and immediately took over the orphanage. Her death was the reason why Akihiko is focused on training to become stronger; so that he could build up the strength to protect those who matter to him. After the battle with Akihiko's Shadow in the TV world, she appears as a 'spirit' before him, still the little girl she was all those years ago. She tells Akihiko that she and their parents are watching him from Heaven.
Chidori Yoshino	
A past member of the infamous Strega, a group that tried to stop S.E.E.S from ridding themselves of the Dark Hour, Tartarus, and ultimately the end of the world. She, however, strayed from Strega the more time she spent with Junpei Iori, and eventually accepted her romantic feelings towards him. Unfortunately though, she did this towards the end of her life. After Junpei was shot by Takaya Sakaki, she immediately attempted to bring him back to life using the power her Persona, Medea , had; the ability to bring dying or already-dead things back to life. However, she did this for Junpei at the cost of her own life. She died on November 22nd, 2009, but in a recent battle with Junpei's Shadow in the TV world, she appears as another false entity created from his desires before saying one last goodbye to one another.
Ms. Amada	
Once a loving mother to Ken Amada. Not much is known about her, but it is implied that she was a single parent to Ken since the father is never mentioned. She was killed a while before S.E.E.S first met Ken. Her death was caused by Shinjiro Aragaki's Persona, Castor, going berserk during a S.E.E.S operation when he, Mitsuru and Akihiko were the only members. However in recent events, after Ken's Shadow was defeated inside the TV, he was able to see his mother for one final time as a false entity that the culprits created.
Koromaru's Master	
A former monk who studied at the Naganaki Shrine and was a great owner to Koromaru. Nothing much has been mentioned of his background, but he was implied to be a good master to the canine; after his death, Koromaru had waited at the shrine for his master to see him again, every day and every night. He died in a car crash accident, but after S.E.E.S and the Investigation Team defeated Koromaru's Shadow, the monk appeared as a 'spirit' before Koromaru.
Natsuki Moriyama	
Fuuka Yamagishi's best friend who had to trasfer from Gekkoukan High School so that she can afford her father's treatment in hospital. Initially, she bullied Fuuka a lot with other girls from her class and even went so far as to lock Fuuka in the gym for a whole night. But then, after regretting what she had done, she wanted to reconcile and apologise to her for her actions. After this, she became fast friends with Fuuka, but then had to move because of how much her family needed the finance for her father's recovery. Recent events had seen Fuuka's Shadow fighting S.E.E.S and the Investigation Team, but when her Shadow was defeated, Natsuki appeared to Fuuka as another 'spirit' before fading away, even though she wasn't dead to begin with.
Metis	
The sister counterpart to Aigis, and more formally known as the human part of Aigis which she wanted to discard upon Minato Arisato's death since she thought that her purpose in life was to protect him. Metis was the source of Aigis' human qualities and emotions and due to Aigis' circumstances, Metis was split from her as a result. But even more recently, during a conflict between the team and Aigis' Shadow, the Shadow takes on Metis' appearance instead of Aigis.
==Lead Antagonists==
There are two lead antagonists who are Original Characters (OC) and have supposedly been the ones responsible for the theft of Minato Arisato's body and his possessions. Though the question on their identities are a mystery.
"The Hood" 	The first of the culprits Yu Narukami comes across. He, at first, put on a friendly attitude towards Yu upon their first meeting. But after Yu gave Yukari Takeba back the cell phone strap she gave to Minato Arisato, he revealed his true disposition as one of the culprits who supposedly stole Minato's body as well as scattering his possessions around Iwatodai. His face is concealed in his jacket hood, hence why he received the name, and no one knows his true identity. He is an arrogant individual who possesses a power to create false entities out of those who enter the TV, especially when it is those who bare their desires before the Midnight Channel. He also wields the power of Persona, but unlike the normal Personae, he summons corrupted versions; the reason for this is unknown. He is crafty, devious and has a contempted behaviour towards others.
"The Trench-Coat"	The second of the two culprits which the group comes across. He made his first appearance in the TV world during when the team entered the TV to find Junpei Iori and Koromaru, who were the next two victims to get lured into the TV. Like the "Hood", he is very open about being one of the criminals who participated in the theft of Minato's body and his possessions, and his identity is also shrouded in a hood. He is an intelligent individual, but uses his knowledge for dark purposes, using it to bring out the worst in people, especially Yu Narukami. He also wields the power to craft false entities from other people's desires, but it is still a mystery whether he owns a Persona or not. Not much of action has been seen from him, but most of the time, with his abilities, he doesn't need to go through much effort.
==Chapters 1-10==
===Chapter One - Departure===
The Investigation Team begin to make their way to Iwatodai, using the bus to travel to the Inaba Train Station where they would follow directions for the Tatsumi Hall which Mitsuru Kirijo asked the group to go to since that was where S.E.E.S resided. Along the way, Yu worries about the safety of his friends since he thinks that the investigation will be much more than just finding Minato's body. Noticing this, Rise comforts him and reassures him that no will get hurt. Meanwhile, Yosuke yells at Chie for drooling on his shoulder, still unaware of what happened during the time they were all fighting Mitsuru's Shadow in the TV world; this, in turn, woke everyone else up to his shouting. After Yosuke started the argument, he expected Chie to begin arguing with him; but instead, she moved away to a seat next to Yukiko, still implying that she still had feelings for him and that she didn't want to fight with him anymore. Somewhat baffled by this, Yosuke turns to Yu, concerned about Nanako since they were all going away to Iwatodai and Ryotaro is usually late home every day. Yu responds by saying that his uncle was going to come home to Nanako more frequently so that nothing bad would happen to her. Rise then sympathises with Chie and makes her feelings clear to Yu who told her that Chie is only feeling this way due to her kissing Yosuke so that she could get him out of Mitsuru's Shadow's 'Marin Karin' spell and, thus creating romantic feelings towards him.
Afterwards, Yu goes to sleep and immediately wakes up to the Velvet Room where he sees Igor and Margaret as usual. They tell Yu that he has completed his first 'turning point' in his destiny but has yet to complete the next one; Igor tells him that in order to be prepared for 'The Coming', he has to strengthen a bond with a person he already knows. The problem was that this bond had yet to begin, so Yu needed to find this person and create that bond with them. Knowing what his next goal is, Yu leaves the Velvet Room and returns to the real world.
When he wakes up, he knew that they were nearly to the train station. He continued to think about what Igor and Margaret had said to him for the rest of the way.
===Chapter Two - Arrival===
S.E.E.S are now waiting for the Investigation Team's arrival; Junpei Iori and Ken Amada were on look-out duty so that they can spot any mode of transport parking outside the Tatsumi Hall and warn everyone so that they can be fully prepared for when they enter the building. Junpei expresses to Mitsuru how much he can't keep away since it was 10pm at night and he was looking out the window for most of the day; Ken reassures Mitsuru saying that he has been awake for the whole time, confirming that nothing has arrived yet. They both then pick up on Mitsuru's sudden disappearance from the day before, somewhat confused by how Mitsuru came into contact with the Investigation Team who lived in the countryside of Inaba. Mitsuru replies to say that they will explain it once everyone was together.
Shortly after, Fuuka Yamagishi and Aigis come down the stairs from Yukari Takeba's room to let Mitsuru know that she wasn't going to join the meeting with the Investigation Team that evening due to tiredness. But Mitsuru learnt from Aigis' concern that Yukari was still thinking about Minato, knowing that it was two years ago since he passed away and that the recent events must've made her depressed.
After some reassurance from Koromaru though, the Investigation Team arrived at the dorm and Mitsuru welcomed them in, beginning their journey with each other now that the two groups had now come together.
===Chapter Three - Introductions===
The newly formed group introduce themselves to each other, starting with the members of S.E.E.S. Everyone was there apart from Akihiko Sanada , who was attending a police induction at a Police Department in Ayanagi City, and Yukari due to personal reasons. But shortly after Mitsuru explained this, Yukari eventually came down to meet the Investigation Team, still not in the brightest of spirits. Afterwards, the Investigation Team did their own introductions before coming to the subject of their mission. When Fuuka mentions that Yu would be the leader of the investigation, he and even Yukari found it unnecessary for having a leader, though Yukari was slightly more against it. But then Mitsuru explains that the body of Minato couldn't have just been stolen, but that it might've had some connections to the Midnight Channel and the TV world, since both events coincided with each other.
It is then revealed that Junpei had also watched the Midnight Channel; this was during the time the Investigation Team was taking shape and trying to find out the culprit behind the string of murders in Inaba, and Junpei had seen everyone's Shadow apart from Yu's since he didn't have one to begin with. But Junpei did not know this and instead thought that they were the real people on the TV. But when Yu briefly explained it, it was then made clear to S.E.E.S that there was another kind of Shadow separate to the ones they used to know; that Shadows can take the form of their hosts while they are made up entirely out of their own suppressed emotions. Along with this Mitsuru explains in understanding that the TV world is a place where a person's desires can be built and structured when their human subconscious enters the TV.
They then wondered about what Yu's appearance on the Midnight Channel was like, but when Yu explained that he didn't have his own Shadow, Mitsuru knew that he had nothing to hide, even urging him to give them other information about himself that she already knows about. When it was made clear that he owned the Wild Card ability, everyone reacted to it positively. All except for Yukari. Concerned that Yu was a replacement for Minato, Yukari asked for him to prove that he had the Wild Card, but after he made a demonstration, she ran back upstairs with the assumption, ignoring everyone as she went. The chapter ends with Yu wondering if Yukari will ever understand.
===Chapter Four - Someone To Talk To===
The next morning, Yu and Yukari were the first early ones up and things were very awkward between them. But before too long, Yukari apologises for her outburst the day before, to which Yu replied with an understanding of what she was going through. To comfort her, Yu told Yukari of his experience when Nanako was critcally ill and how she came back to life after a near-death experience. With that being said, Yu conveys to her that he wasn't a replacement for Minato, but a person willing to help; he says that he and the rest of his group, as well as S.E.E.S will do everything in their power to find Minato and hopefully find the ones responsible for it, to which Yukari said to him that he was so much like Minato in terms of his kindness and willingness to help others when in crisis, as well as having the exact same power as he did. Ultimately though, this made Yukari come to like Yu, saying how she was finally glad that he was the leader of the team.
After their friendly conversation, Yu needed to find a suitable place for his katana other than in between the coat lining in his jacket, which Yukari had a solution to. She led him to the cupboard that sat just under the stairs where S.E.E.S had been keeping their equipment for sentimental reasons; as Yu placed his katana inside, he noticed that the place where Minato's stuff was usually kept was completely empty. When he asked Yukari, she mentioned to him that, along with his body, his inventory was also taken as well. Some of the things that were stolen consisted of Minato's music player, cell phone, Evoker, and even the cell phone strap which Yukari had given him at the time when she proclaimed her love for him. At this moment, Yu could remember a cell phone strap which a stranger in a hood gave to him back at the Junes Department Store in Inaba. But after a while of giving it thought, Yu shrugged it off before getting ready to go out to the city.
===Chapter Five - Turning Tables===
Later that day, everyone went to the Paulownia Mall, where they all bought various souvenirs as well as supplies in case of anything that might happen along their mission. Throughout the day, Yu tags along with his teammates, going from store to store to make conversation with them.
When he went to Chagall Cafe, he met up with Fuuka, Aigis, Yukari and Ken, sitting down with them along with Junpei. Even though he was reluctant to bring up Yukari's cell phone strap beforehad, Yu eventually told her about it and returned it to her. But upon being asked where he found it, Yu had to lie, saying that he found it under one of the benches near the fountain; he had to do this so that he wouldn't give away the hooded boy's motives which he repected. To Yukari, the cell phone strap was a sign that someone or something had definitely stolen Minato's body and his possessions since Minato was the only one who could've had the cell phone strap last, and it couldn't have just appeared under the bench by chance.
After finishing their coffee, they all left the cafe and joined up with the rest of the group. As they did, they overhead Yosuke teasing Chie since she had bought a 'Mood Bracelet' from the 'Be Blue V' shop which told her that she was in love. Still unaware of the truth behind Chie's feelings, Yosuke tries to figure out who the mystery crush is, naming boys such as Kou Ichijo as likely candidates. Again though, like with the bus journey, Chie just walked away from him, trying to ignore any conflict with Yosuke, which only made him more regretting about his previous teasings.
Everyone knew that they weren't about to leave the mall yet due to Mitsuru doing business with Detective Kurosawa, so they parted again to do some last minute shopping around the place. Yu, however, saw the hooded boy walking into the dead-end passage next to the police station and immediately tried to catch up with him. When he did, Yu explained the situation to the boy and worried about what might happen to him since he may have made him a potential suspect to the group now. But according to the hooded boy, that didn't matter, because he only needed Yu to give back the cell phone strap; this only made Yu slightly confused about what the boy was trying to achieve, since the returning of the cell phone strap only made Yukari upset and that irked him somewhat.
The boy's true intentions is then revealed. The boy quickly pulled out a weapon which was actually Minato's own blade and used it against Yu, scarring his cheek so that he could make a quick getaway. Due to the agonising pain Yu was experiencing at the time, the boy was successful in doing so and managed to escape. After this, Yu went back to the group who were shocked to suddenly see him with a cut on his face, and after Rise asked him about how he got the scar, Yu told everyone about the hooded boy, who he now named him as the culprit behind the theft of Minato's body as well as his possessions.
===Chapter Six - Calling Adachi===
S.E.E.S and the Investigation Team return to the dorm after the events at Paulownia Mall and tended to Yu's wound. Whilst he was being treated, the news mentioned that forensic scientists working in the Iwatodai region had only recently found out the connections and similarities between Minato Arisato's, Takeharu Kirijo's and Shinjiro Aragaki's deaths. The Investigation Team knew by now that Shinjiro's death was a result of murder during the Dark Hour, and were told by Mitsuru that he and Akihiko Sanada were close friends since childhood, to which they sympathised with S.E.E.S about.
Later, Yu shared with the group his thoughts on who brought back the Midnight Channel. He didn't believe that Izanami was the one who brought it back because of that fact that she only created the Midnight Channel to fit humanity's wants and desires, which was actually something Tohru Adachi orchestrated in order to create the TV world. Since Yu had a suspicion that Adachi was still at large and that he still carries Ameno-Sagiri, which led him to believe that Adachi is to blame since he was harbouring the god of fog.
Even though the Investigation Team knew that Adachi is now in prison, they believed that he might be operating from jail. Yu called Ryotaro Dojima, a top Inaba police detective and his uncle, and asked for him to speak to Adachi. After persuading him, Dojima passed Yu to Adachi. It was then that Adachi revealed that he wasn't the one responsible for broadcasting the Midnight Channel again since he didn't have a TV in jail to work with, nor did he make any attempt to escape. Yu, however, still believed that he had a part to play in the return of the Midnight Channel and asked Adachi of Ameno-Sagiri's whereabouts since he was the only known person to harbour it. But Adachi revealed that Ameno-Sagiri never sided with him but only worked with him because of the fact that they shared the same desires of wanting the real world to become a Shadow-ridden environment; he went further to say that Ameno-Sagiri can find another host apart from himself, saying that the next person to harbour it will have needed to have the same thoughts and same desires as he had in order for Ameno-Sagiri to coporate with them.
Yu hung up and told the group that Adachi wasn't the one to blame.
===Chapter Seven - Aragaki Screening===
It is nighttime, and everyone, after hearing the news of Adachi's lack of involvement in the return of the Midnight Channel, returned to their dorm rooms. Yu cannot sleep from all he's had to think about.
He answers a call from Yukari who also was unable to rest, and the phone conversation leads on to how her lack of sleep was caused by a dream she had. She confides in him that the dream happened two years ago, when S.E.E.S were within their first days of occupying the Tatsumi Hall, and that the dream lasted a week in real-life. She says that her dream was solely focused around Minato and how their bond became closer with each 'day' until they fell in love with each other, as if reliving a different sequence that would end with her and Minato as a couple. The dream ended with Minato reminding her of what was really happening; that she was dreaming of this and that he was still dead, sacrificing his soul to keep the Great Seal closed.
Yu is astonished by how Yukari was able to recall the dream very vividly even after two years. It is then revealed that Yukari sometimes becomes and insomniac because of it and that she had begun to experience the dream again and again very recently, for a few days, which implies that she started to relive this dream ever since the news of Minato's disapperance was made known.
She tells him of the promise she made to Minato before his death; that she would make an effort to change the world so that more and more people would stop wishing for 'The Fall'. However, she explicity mentions that she is unable to keep this promise since Minato wasn't with her to support her. This makes her upset, which Yu tries to prevent by consoling her.
Yukari, though she doesn't mention it, implies that Yu and Minato had so many similarities; one of them being that he would help those who are suffering, especially when he proved her of that in that moment.
But as the time struck midnight, the Midnight Channel airs again. This time, the TV screen showed someone who was unfamiliar to the Investigation Team, as the silhouette. A text from Mitsuru prompts everyone to make their way to the lounge of the Tatsumi Hall and hold a group meeting to discuss what to do about this sudden broadcast.
Rise describes the figure as a young man with a beanie and a jacket, but because of lack of clarity from the Midnight Channel, she couldn't make out the full details, as was the same with everyone else. Naoto then speaks up to explain a theory; she mentions that the reason they were seeing these particular people on the Midnight Channel was because someone had seen them through the media, such as the news, and thus implying that the aforementioned person is then led into the TV world by an emotional reaction to the person they see on the Midnight Channel.
After some thought, Yu tells the rest of the group that the person on the Midnight Channel was Shinjiro Aragaki. Mitsuru clarifies that the person seen on the Midnight Channel is a result of another person holding desires to see this said person, and knowing that no one in the group had entered the TV, it had to be someone else who knew Shinjiro who wasn't present in the group at the moment. Yukiko clarifies this and tells the group that anyone can watch the Midnight Channel, so anyone could be the one causing it to broadcast.
Fuuka, however, arrived at the answer. Akihiko Sanada was the next to enter the TV that night.
Mitsuru frantically calls Akihiko's mobile, but immediately finds out that there is no signal coming from Akihiko's end of the line. She makes it clear that that never happens to them and that it must've meant something. Yu then tells her that mobile phone signal is not available whatsoever in the TV world and that Akihiko's being in the TV would make sense of why Mitsuru's attempt at calling him suddenly cut out.
Without hesitation, Mitsuru and Yu agree that they would all get prepared to enter the TV and that the operation to save Akihiko would happen that night.
===Chapter Eight - The Orphanage===
After the Investigation Team and S.E.E.S finished preparations for their first expedition as one group into the TV world, Teddie remembers to give the members of S.E.E.S their own 'Teddie Glasses'; the same kind the Investigation Team use to see through the fog inside the TV - Kanji becomes excited when he notices that Koromaru's are of the same design as his own pair. Realising that S.E.E.S too had offerings, Mitsuru presented to the members of the Investigation Team with their own Evokers, getting shocked reactions from them when they first thought that S.E.E.S were offering them guns. Aigis explains the Evokers' function to them to ease their nerves. Mitsuru explains further that they won't have any problems with summoning Personas since they had already had practice with calling them out before and that only on first use would cause unconsciousness.
Once they were ready, Yu warns S.E.E.S that the fall into the TV was a long one, but leads them into the TV world nonetheless. After he came out through the long corridor, Yosuke followed through with Chie falling onto him. Before Yosuke could shout at her, Chie immediately apologises and helps Yosuke up; he becomes weirded out by the situation, still unaware of the time when he was charmed by Mitsuru's Shadow. Afterwards, Yu and Yosuke helped everyone else out through the TV that led back to the real world one by one.
Upon Yu's request, Rise began to summon Kanzeon to scout the TV world for Akihiko's inevitable presence and decided to use her Evoker to do so. However, she struggled to do so since putting the Evoker to her head made the summoning process seem more suicidal. With the help of Yukari though, Rise called upon her Persona after pulling the Evoker's trigger, making her the first Investigation Team member to use it. After scanning throughout the landscape, Rise was able to find someone, but found it very difficult the pinpoint exactly where they were. Fuuka summoned Juno to help Rise with the search, and after combining powers, they were able to find the location.
Everyone made their way to the destination and immediately came across a structure that had 'Minashigo-In', which is the Japanese romaji for 'Orphanage'. It was then that Mitsuru realised that this was the same orphanage that Akihiko, his sister Miki Sanada, and Shinjiro Aragaki (who was seen previously as a silhouette on the Midnight Channel) went to when they were children.
They all enter the dungeon, and after scouting the area, they found Akihiko along with his Shadow, as they expected. The Shadow taunted Akihiko with how weak he was towards moving on from the tragedy with Shinjiro and Miki's demise and how much his strength was leaving him because of it. Yosuke warned Akihiko to not say what is usually said in response to the Shadow's taunting, but eventually, Akihiko gave in and denied everything the Shadow was saying, leading to an inevitable battle.
===Chapter Nine - Sanada Showdown===
The Shadow swallows Akihiko as it transforms into its berserked state, which Mitsuru immediately recognises as a Shadow-like version of Caesar, but with his own face. The Investigation Team and S.E.E.S go into battle, which marked the first ever fight where the two groups worked together.
They all fought hard, using techniques such as cut-ins and combining Personas with one another to take down the Shadow. The battle was mostly in the Persona-users' favour, but Aigis became the most fragile one in the united group when her summoning of Orpheus went awry, resulting in her psyche becoming instantly strained immediately after just entering battle. However, after a arduous fight, the Persona-users managed to defeat Akihiko's Shadow.
Shortly after, Akihiko's acceptance towards his Shadow saw him to find his real reasons for looking into the past rather than looking to the future; that he focused on it out of depression for who he had lost but seeing it also as an incentive to push himself forward. After the Shadow fades away back into his subconscious, Akihiko suddenly sees the spirits of Shinjiro Aragaki and his deceased little sister, Miki Sanada, who says to him that she and their parents are always watching him from heaven. Teary-eyed and re-fixing his resolve, Akihiko says one final goodbye to the spirits before they faded away.
He introduces himself to the Investigation Team and takes particular interest in Yu since he weilded the Wild Card ability, saying that he hadn't seen that kind of power in a long time. After the introductions, he asks Mitsuru if she still had his Evoker, which made her think that he was going to abandon his trainee police duties to stay with them at the Tatsumi Hall; he says that he would just put himself on sick leave for a couple of weeks to join the investigation.
===Chapter Ten - Wild Card Malfunction===
Everyone makes their way out of the TV world, and after getting back to the Tatsumi Hall they all went straight to bed. As Yu went to sleep, he was met with Elizabeth, Margaret and Igor who waited for him in the Velvet Room, and he was somewhat surprised to see Aigis in the room as well.
Elizabeth noticed the strain in Aigis' psyche almost immediately and asks her if everything was alright. Aigis and Yu explained briefly of how Aigis' summoning of Orpheus went completely wrong, which intrigued Igor greatly. After a short diagnosis of Aigis' Wild Card, Igor admitted that he wasn't sure of what was causing the 'malfunction', as he described it, but was able to tell that she was no longer able to summon Personae from that of the Fool Arcana. He agreed to monitor her Wild Card so that he could provide her with a better explanation in the future.
Yu asks Aigis if summoning Orpheus was like this before, to which she said that it hadn't. She adds that the Wild Card wasn't actually hers to begin with and that it belonged to Minato Arisato before she inherited it upon his death. Yu could only think that Minato had to fit in with the Wild Card's malfunction somehow, but before he could elaborate on the thought any further, Margaret changed to the topic; she asked of him about anything that had happened during the time since they last met in the Velvet Room. Yu replied with the description of the hooded boy that only recently turned on him at the Paulownia Mall and asked if any of the Velvet Room residents knew anything about him.
Not much was said other than the boy would be both a distraction as well as a necessary part of Yu's destiny but that he does pose a threat regardless. Before leaving the Velvet Room, Elizabeth reminds Yu of the promise he made to her.
The meeting between the five lasts until the next morning.
==Chapters 11-20==
==Trivia==
*Persona: World And Judgement is the more popular fanfiction of the trilogy The-Final-Fidelity has produced. Persona: Spirits In Pixels comes second and Persona: His Sapphire Eyes, third. It is also the longest story the author has created in the trilogy.
*The story takes place a few months after the events of Persona 4: Golden, which means that Persona 4: Arena and Persona 4 Arena: Ultimax's events have been discounted; this was due to the author writing the first chapters of Persona: World And Judgement before the game's announcement revealed anything about its content, including the character, Labrys, and Akihiko's living habits (he becomes a trainee police detective for the Ayanagi Police Department in the story - a reference to Persona -trinity soul-). Because of the author's already-decided plan, the story follows events that leaves out the plot of the two fighter games.
**Although Labrys isn't included in the story, the author has made plans of bringing her into the story at the end, mainly because of the recent Persona games that have been released since the story was published - this was so The-Final-Fidelity can make plans for a possible future Persona fanfiction, although he has already made plans for a spin-off to Persona: World And Judgement.
*The story had been in-progress for two years, and is still described by the author as 'nowhere near finished'.
**The author has currently written 46 chapters for Persona: World And Judgement, writing over 300,000 words and receiving over 250 reviews. The story has had over 170 Favourites and over 190 Followers. All statistics are from FanFiction.net.
*Unlike the protagonist from the original Persona 4 game, and unlike Yu Narukami's personality in the manga and anime adaption, the character now has a more vulnerable side to himself, and this was solely decided upon by the author's judgement. The-Final-Fidelity preferred this personality for Yu Narukami because of his belief that protagonists are more relatable to readers if they had a more 'human' side to them, other than protagonists who are perceived as invulnerable and heroic.
**It is also worth noting that Yu Narukami's relationship with Rise Kujikawa was also down to the author's decision, who also believed that those of the Lovers Arcana are the most likeliest candidates to be the protagonist's love interest. However, the author has contested this with Marie's appearance in the story - this love-triangle was mostly influenced by the author's uncertainty of Marie's relationship arc with Yu Narukami in Persona 4: Golden.
*Many readers have asked the author why the Investigation Team needed Evokers since they were able to summon them without it. In reply, the author mentions that the exchanging of the Teddie Glasses and the Evokers would've made it so that the two groups wouldn't seem separate from each other and that they would have the image as one unified group. When any of the Investigation Team members use it, especially for Yu Narukami, their feeling of using the Evoker is described as an easier summoning medium compared to their usual way by breaking a tarot card in their hands.