Naoto Shirogane

Naoto Shirogane is a playable character in Persona 4. The fifth generation of the famed Shirogane detectives, Naoto arrives in Inaba to help investigate the murders, and enrolls as a first-year student at Yasogami High School.Naoto is the shortest member of the Investigation Team. She is androgynous in appearance with short blue hair and gray eyes (blue in The Animation and Arena). She wears Yasogami High's gakuran, with the exception of one optional occasion in which she wears a seifuku-style school uniform. Naoto is often seen wearing formal clothing such as blue shirts, ties and her trademark blue cap. On days off during winter, she wears a dark blue double-breasted cardigan coat (which she says is custom made) with a light blue bowtie (on her white dress shirt underneath) and yellow buttons and plaid blue pants. Naoto's summer outfit, however, is reminiscent of the clothing of Kyouji Kuzunoha and consists of a light blue shirt and a yellow necktie.

In Persona 4 Golden during the ski trip in the winter, she wears a snow suit with a white hooded sweatshirt, light blue snow jacket, dark purple gloves, dark pants and gray shoes, with a pair of goggles hanging around her neck.In Persona 4 Arena, her appearance is the same as in the game (her winter outfit).

Dancing All Night In Persona 4: Dancing All Night, she wears a combination of her Yasogami uniform and summer outfit, the only minor difference being the addition of black suspenders, a white tank top, dark brown boots and black fingerless gloves. She wears her tie differently, in a seifuku-style fashion.

X Detective Naoto In Persona x Detective, Naoto is seen with much longer, nearly waist-length hair. Her trademark cap is absent and she wears a gray suit with a white shirt and a blue tie.Having lost both her parents in a car accident when she was very young, Naoto is an orphan who acts very mature in spite of her age. As a descendant of a respected lineage of famous detectives, she wears formal clothing and deepens her voice when she speaks in a sophisticated, stilted manner. She is generally very serious, focused and mission-oriented.At first, this seriousness is rigid, unnatural and stubborn due to her secluded nature. This causes her to have trouble getting along with others by adamantly shutting them off, but even then she's not being taken seriously by those she wants to be acknowledged by as she comes across as trying too hard to be an adult.[2] She rarely jokes around which can make her seem like a killjoy or party pooper when the team is involved in silly antics. In Persona 4 Arena, Kanji calls her out on this, saying she is too "uptight" and it makes her seem distant and on a different wavelength.[3] She does get annoyed by the laidback nature of others, responding either with dry annoyance or brushing them off entirely.

This has led to a lack of friends and while she does not show it often, she desires for friendship and a sense of belonging. As she bonds further with the team, she warms up considerably. In Persona 4 Arena, she notes the surprising difficulty in trying to balance her detective work with her newfound friends. In fact, she even expresses concern that she keeps putting work before time with them, showing how much her relationships with them have become to her.Naoto is very intelligent and analytical. A running gag, however, is that she texts in all caps with abbreviations, for example, "SEE U TOMORROW? Y/N PLZ REPLY ASAP" and "I HAVE IMPORTANT INFORMATION 4 U, PLZ SEE ME TOMORROW AFTER SCHOOL." This gag, however, is exclusive to the localization.

In reality, Naoto has been bound by labels and stereotypes that compromised her identity and sense of relations. As such, she would end up losing herself within her age group and sex, and it even compromises the genuine passions she has as a detective due to her title. All of that would not only make her sheltered from others, but she would become a kind of a workaholic when it comes to her job. Much of her troubles stem from having no reason to be who she truly is, causing her to forget her true feelings, even actively ignoring them. Instead, she tries to fill the hole in her heart by seeking acknowledgement.

Due to her desires to be an ideal detective juxtaposed with people's prejudice towards her age both transferred towards an insecurity of her gender: she yearns to be seen as an adult, and expresses frustration at being treated like a child by the police force. She hates being looked down upon, and fears no one will take her seriously as a female in a male-oriented occupation field, thinking she'll be discarded for said difference.[4] The conceit Naoto tolerated and endured for her age had made her self-conscious in regards to her sex, trying to balance it with the image of an ideal detective. In response, Naoto disguised herself as a male from an age young enough to be able to fool most people around her, including wearing platform shoes. It is also implied Naoto began binding her chest to hide her breasts.

When she confronts her Shadow, she comes to the realization that her true desire is not in becoming an adult or a male, but to be respected for who she is as a person, including accepting herself as is. However, years of disguising herself as male along with her own personality quirks have her struggling to embrace her femininity after denying it as a part of herself. By the end of the game, due to her own will and with the protagonist's help, she accepts herself for who she is, and the fact she does not always need to change who she is to suit the world. In the epilogue of Persona 4 Golden, she has become more confident in herself, seen as in her no longer binding her breasts and growing out her hair, giving her a more feminine appearance. She is comfortable with not only who she is, but also that everyone else is aware that she is female.

Despite her mature nature, Naoto has a shy side to her, as she refuses to wear a bikini at the Yasogami Beauty Pageant, but still manages to win despite dropping out of the swimsuit part because of her endearing popularity among voters. She also becomes embarrassed during the Investigation Team's visit to the Amagi Inn, when the schedules for the hot springs' use were confused. During the ski trip in Persona 4 Golden, Naoto appears to be afraid of ghost stories, and when in a state of fear and/or panic, her voice becomes more feminine than usual, possibly meaning that she affects her voice to sound more masculine. Unlike the other girls, she is shown to be a decent cook as she helped create an edible and delicious cake for Nanako's recovery celebration, though this was mostly down to her insistence that she and the other girls follow the recipe and admits that it took them three attempts to get the desired result.Naoto is uninterested in romance, and seems easily flustered, embarrassed or dismissive when the topic arises. When she possibly receives a love letter, Naoto claims romance is "entangling" and she has no time to be "dilly-dallying with callow love affairs" and almost throws it away. Despite this, she shows a growing interest in the protagonist if one chooses so in her Social Link. It's implied her lack of interest in romance seems to be tied due to not wanting to be distracted from her work along with fear and insecurity in becoming close to someone in such a manner.A well-known detective, Naoto was dubbed the "Detective Prince" by the media. She is first mentioned when the department which Ryotaro Dojima works has no lead upon their investigations for the bizarre murder case, resulting in Dojima's superiors employing Naoto to assist them, an action which greatly disturbs Dojima. Furthermore, Naoto claims that the only reward she wants for solving the case is the truth, and wants no assistance from other departments, further annoying Dojima.

Naoto first appears on-screen during the Investigation Team's investigation of Kanji Tatsumi as the potential next victim. Incidentally, Naoto was also able to deduce that Kanji would be the next victim, and tries to seek clues by speaking to him. During that time, Naoto expresses interest in the case, though Kanji mistakes it as Naoto being interested in him.Naoto later enrolls at Yasogami High School, immediately attracting the admiration of others. However, her serious nature often leads to her ignoring her admirers and classmates.

During one of the Investigation Team's meetings regarding the suspect in the case, Mitsuo Kubo, Naoto appears and chastises the Team's efforts, deeming their investigation as nothing more but a "game." She tells them that their game is about to end, and that Yasoinaba will soon return to its peaceful, rustic self. Annoyed by her words, Rise Kujikawa tells Naoto that she is the one who was treating the case like a game. Surprised by the idol, Naoto reluctantly accepts that what Rise said might be true, lamenting that detectives are just employed for the time being, and once the case has been solved, they are simply pushed aside.

After the arrest of Mitsuo Kubo, the first suspect in the case, Naoto remains suspicious and decides to become bait to lure the culprit. She is interviewed by a TV show and subsequently kidnapped and thrown into the Midnight Channel. Through the Team's efforts to gather clues, they find out that Naoto, despite her professional personality, is actually a workaholic who chooses to ignore the police department's advice and work alone. As such, she is often deemed a kid trying too hard by the officers.

If Naoto isn't rescued by the 10/5 deadline, Kanji will call the protagonist and tell him that they found a body, it was Naoto's. Kanji angrily demands what's going on and why this happened before the protagonist drops his phone, blacks out, and is summoned to the Velvet Room, where he was given the choice to go back a week later by Igor.

The Investigation Team eventually manages to detect Naoto's location in the Midnight Channel, an industrial secret laboratory, and sets out to rescue the detective. The Secret Laboratory symbolizes Naoto's insecurities, that she fears being ratted out as a woman and getting her reputation sullied in the police force as a result.The Investigation Team eventually finds Naoto, along with her Shadow, who is busy preparing for a "body-altering operation." Shadow Naoto taunts Naoto, saying that in reality she is nothing more than just a child trying to play "superhero," and that if Naoto doesn't become a "grown big boy," then Naoto will never find a reason for living. Confused and surprised, Naoto denies the Shadow's claims. However, the Shadow then reveals a secret: Naoto was born female. It clarifies that the "body-altering operation" was to be a sex-change operation. Fueled by Naoto's rejection and internal suffering, her Shadow transforms and attacks the party.Naoto's Shadow is a robotic doppelgänger equipped with large toy-like laser guns, rocket feet and a jetpack, representing Naoto's resentment towards being treated like a child and not taken seriously, as well as the pressure she feels from working in a sexist occupation dominated by men who don't take women seriously. It can also be something of a split personality, as it can talk seriously one minute, and act helpless and innocent the next.

After defeating the Shadow, Naoto explains that her parents were detectives as well, but were both killed in one of their investigations. She acknowledges her parents' passion for their job, and wishes to become a "hard-boiled" detective, inheriting the title of "Shirogane." She would be looked down on when she was helping in investigations when she was young, but as she grew older these insecurities would transfer to her sex: she fears as long as she herself is a girl, she can never achieve her dreams. She eventually realizes that what she wanted was not to become a man, but to be accepted and respected as her true self, and her Shadow acknowledges her resolution, transforming into Sukuna-Hikona, her Persona.For the remainder of the game, Naoto's detective skills prove to be a great asset to the Investigation Team. She arranges for the Investigation Team to visit a doctor for a physical check up, due to concerns about being in an otherworld filled with potentially poisonous fog having possible ill side effects. She also manages to win a beauty pageant despite not appearing for the swimsuit part. After Nanako's kidnapping, Ryotaro Dojima begs Naoto to save his daughter. After Nanako "dies," Naoto is extremely upset, feeling she was at fault for making Taro Namatame talk instead of rescuing Nanako back in Heaven when Nanako said she couldn't breathe.

When the real killer, Tohru Adachi is found, in response to his misanthropic ideas, Naoto tells him people cannot live alone and that they need each other in order to survive, and notes it would only be natural for people who remove themselves from human society to find it difficult to live in it, but since Adachi throws away his own humanity as well, he claims to find life troublesome while at the same time causing trouble for others, stating that his logic is that of a immature, egotistic brat.

After Inaba is saved, Naoto visits the protagonist at his departure.The protagonist creates the Fortune Arcana Social Link with Naoto after rescuing her, and teams up with her to solve a challenge given to the Shirogane clan by the "Phantom Thief." The protagonist needs maximum Knowledge and Courage stat to initiate the Social Link, and the earliest opportunity to do so is on October 21st. Despite the lack of time to develop this Social Link, Naoto's is one of the few that can be advanced on rainy weather, when most other Social Links are unavailable.

Simply attempting to talk to Naoto while she's in school will not start the Social Link. The protagonist first needs to talk to a man in black at the North Shopping District while it's not raining. The protagonist will then receive a card which causes the Link to start when presented to Naoto.

In the events of their investigation, the Phantom Thief's identity is revealed to be Naoto's grandfather, who wishes to help her get back her passion of investigating cases for the truth, rather than investigating for the sake of the Shirogane name.

By the end of the Fortune Arcana Social Link, Naoto acknowledges her passion for investigation, and thanks the protagonist. Having recognized the change in her psyche and resolution, Naoto's Persona, Sukuna-Hikona, transfigures into Yamato-Takeru.

To pursue a Lovers Route with Naoto, the protagonist must initiate the Rank 6 & 8 events. During Rank 6, the protagonist must choose "I'm glad you're a girl" as their 3rd answer. During Rank 8, the protagonist and Naoto will arrive at the Shopping District where Naoto claims that someone has told her that the Phantom Thief has been sighted around said area. They will then head to the shrine where a man brandishes a knife at Naoto. The protagonist will have three options; Protect Naoto, Fight alongside Naoto or Do nothing. Doing the first one will at first cause a negative reaction from her; the second will cause the same thing, but she'll be less frustrated; the third will simply agitate her.

Afterwards, the protagonist will be given a choice of whether to pursue a relationship with her or remain her friend. Choosing the top option ('Because I love you') will cause her to become embarrassed and conflicted; she'll even state that because the protagonist has said that, she can no longer look him in the eye. This will advance the link to Rank 8, and cause Naoto to run home.

In the Rank 9 event, Naoto will read off the final challenge from the thief and ask the protagonist where she likes to be; for the most positive reaction, answer "Somewhere high." She will then ask herself something she can't stand doing. Again, for the most positive reaction, answer "Throwing things away." Provided the protagonist pursued a relationship with her, she'll blush and ask if she mentioned it before.

She and the protagonist then go to the hill and investigate the trash can, where she will obtain the final item, The Detective's Pocketbook. She will begin to curse her grandfather for scheming the entire event and sit on the bench with the protagonist. Once again, the event differs depending on the relationship that was chosen. During the Lovers Route, after Rank 9 has been reached, she will confess her love to the protagonist.

Her reward item for reaching Rank 10 is the Detective's Badge, which allows the protagonist to fuse Norn.

Should the protagonist choose the second option, which results in the protagonist replying that he prefers Naoto's voice to be higher, Naoto will wear a seifuku (female school uniform) on December 24th to meet the protagonist, should the protagonist accept her invitation to spend the night together. Her gift for him is a handmade watch that notifies him of the distance of her location, reading Distance <1m. In the Japanese version, Naoto instead asks the protagonist whether it is weird for her to use male pronouns (僕, boku)? to describe herself.