Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 - Story - Plot

Plot

Persona 4 begins on April 11, 2011, with the protagonist, a high school second year, arriving in Inaba to live with the Dojimas, consisting of his uncle Ryotaro and his cousin Nanako, for one year, as his parents are working abroad. Just after his arrival, a TV announcer is found dead, her body hanging from an antenna; Saki Konishi, the high school student who had discovered the body, is later found dead under similar gruesome circumstances. After the protagonist and his friends accidentally enter the TV world, they encounter Teddie, who helps them travel freely between the TV and real worlds. They awaken their Persona abilities, and, realizing that the murders stem from Shadow attacks in the TV world, are able to rescue several would-be victims. Yosuke, Chie, Yukiko, Kanji, Rise and Teddie accept their other selves, which become giant Shadows in the TV world, and join the group as Persona-users. Mitsuo Kubo, a student from another high school who disappears following the death of Kinshiro Morooka, the protagonist's foul-mouthed homeroom teacher, claims credit for the murders; it is eventually learned that Kubo only killed the teacher and played no part in the other murders. Naoto Shirogane, a nationally-renowned "Detective Prince" investigating the case, is also rescued and joins the group, who learn that "he" is actually a girl who assumed a male identity to avoid the police's sexism.

Events come to a head when Ryotaro Dojima mistakenly accuses the protagonist of being involved in the murders. Nanako is kidnapped during the protagonist's interrogation, leading Ryotaro to engage in a vehicular pursuit with the culprit. The chase ends as they both crash; the kidnapper escapes with Nanako through a television set in his truck, and the gravely-injured Ryotaro entrusts her rescue to the party. The group tracks them down within the TV world; the culprit, Taro Namatame, attacks them as a "human/Shadow" hybrid - Kunino-sagiri - but is defeated, and both he and Nanako are taken to the Inaba hospital. When Nanako appears to die, the group furiously confronts Namatame; as the protagonist, the player must help the others realize that Namatame is not the killer by pointing out the lack of a proper motive, and subsequently work to determine that Ryotaro's assistant, Tohru Adachi, is the true killer. Failure to do so ends the game with the party being unable to solve the case; Nanako's death being permanent; and the recurring fog permanently setting in, the latter of which will eventually result in humanity's demise.

Having identified the culprit as Adachi, the party chases and locates him within the TV world. Adachi explains that his actions were out of both boredom and the belief that humanity is better off existing as Shadows; his claims are dismissed by the party. After fighting Adachi, he is possessed by Ameno-sagiri, the Japanese God of Fog, who reveals that the fog is lethal to people and will eventually wipe out humanity. Upon his defeat, he agrees to lift the fog, congratulating the party on their resolve. Defeated, the wounded Adachi agrees to assume responsibility for his actions and turns himself in. The game moves forward to the day before the protagonist must travel home. If the player returns to the Dojima residence, the game ends with the party sending the protagonist off as he departs Inaba. Alternatively, should the player be able to identify the unexplained cause of the Midnight Channel and attempt to resolve this plot element, the protagonist meets with the party and together they decide to put the case to a permanent end.

The protagonist confronts the gas station attendant encountered at the start of the game, who reveals herself to be the Japanese goddess Izanami, the "conductor" behind the game's events. The cause of the recurring fog is established as an attempt to eliminate humans by merging the TV world with the human world, all for the "sake" of humanity. The group tracks Izanami down within the TV world and battle her, but is at first unable to win; the defeated protagonist is given strength by the bonds he has forged with those around him, and with this power awakens a new Persona - Izanagi-no-Okami - which he uses to defeat Izanami. In doing so, the fog in each world is lifted, and the TV world is restored to its original form. The game ends with the party sending the protagonist off the following day, and a post-credits scene depicts the group resolving to remain friends forever, as the protagonist examines a photo of the party.