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| “ | Yuma: What's your relationship with him? Makoto: You could say we both fought for the top spot in Amaterasu. That's the easiest way to put it. Yuma: Fought for the top? Makoto: At the time, Yomi was so elite, it was assumed he'd be the next CEO. No one expected I would overtake him and gain that title for myself. Yuma: But in the end, you were chosen. Makoto: I never purposely aimed for the top. But there was something I had to do as the CEO. Yuma: What was it? Makoto: It's a long story, so I'll save it for another day. |
„ |
| ~ Makoto carefully concealing his immense corruption and abuse of power from Yuma, who inquires him about his relationship with Yomi Hellsmile during the research lab investigation. |
| “ | Yuma: You may wear the mask of a saint, but it can't hide the crimes you've committed! You are the mastermind behind the global kidnapping case the WDO has been pursuing! People were abducted across the world and turned into food for homunculi at your factory! Makoto: I had no choice. They must eat in order to survive. Besides, I never took innocent people. I gathered criminals with no chance of rehabilitation, and simply accelerated their sentencing. You saw the memo as well. Besides, they were all on death row anyway. Yuma: That doesn't make it right! |
„ |
| ~ Makoto remorselessly claiming that he had to kidnap and process criminals into meat buns for the sake of the survival of Kanai Ward's homunculi. |
| “ | Shinigami: You think you can just take over the world or something? I swear every final boss is the same. Makoto: Oh, not at all... With the WDO under my control, there would be no need for anyone to keep sticking their nose in our business. The mystery of Kanai Ward will forever remain a secret... I only have one wish. To protect the citizens of the city. For the homunculi of Kanai Ward to live in peace. I'll do anything to accomplish that. I don't care what I must sacrifice, I will protect Kanai Ward. And you...will die here. Your death is necessary for Kanai Ward's peace. Yuma: ... Makoto: To this city...you are the real evil, detective. If you expose the truth, many people will suffer. I won't let you do that just to satisfy your ego. No matter how hard you try to destroy this peaceful world, I'll fight back using your own brain against you. Homunculi may not be human, but they have the right to live too! I won't let anyone take that away! Even if you are Number One of the WDO! |
„ |
| ~ Makoto's delusional declaration that his original counterpart is Kanai Ward's true evil. |
Makoto Kagutsuchi is the main antagonist of the 2023 adventure game Master Detective Archives: Rain Code.
He is the CEO of Amaterasu Corporation, meaning he is the immediate supervisor of Peacekeepers director Yomi Hellsmile, and the homunculus clone of Number One of the World Detective Organization. After he was created by the Unified Government as part of their conspiracy to create an immortal army of homunculi, he escaped into Kanai Ward and took over the city, covering up the disastrous results of Dr. Huesca's homunculus research in the process while the citizens forgot about the tragedy that had occurred and how they replaced themselves with defective homunculi.
How the truth is hidden is not of his concern, being willing to use any means no matter how unethical or immoral to hide this from the citizens. As a result of his misdeeds as the CEO of Amaterasu Corporation and exploitation of Number One's identity, he is the arch-nemesis of Yuma Kokohead, who is the real Number One.
In Japanese, he is voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki, who also voiced Lady Nagant in My Hero Academia, Malva in Pokémon X and Y, Ophelia Phamrsolone in Fate/Grand Order, and Leanne in Beast Tamer. In English, he is voiced by Brandon Winckler, who also voiced Bede in Pokémon: Twilight Wings, Kempf in Fire Emblem: Thracia 776, Ignacio in Spooky Month, and Zed in Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny. When unmasked, he is voiced by Katsumi Fukuhara in Japanese and Lucien Dodge in English, both who also voiced his original counterpart and the latter voicing Hifumi Yamada from Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Toshikazu Hazamada from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable, Mahito in Jujutsu Kaisen, Zoisite in Sailor Moon, Chin in Re;Zero, and Yukio Hans Vorarlberna in Bleach.
Appearance[]
Makoto is a thin and short man that stands at 150 cm, or 4ft 11 inches, tall with messy long grey hair that drapes down to his chest. He wears a purple suit adorned with golden floral patterns with a white undershirt and a blue tie. The buttons on his jacket all have the katakana for the Japanese word for Kanai inscribed on them. He also wears grey platform boots. Makoto wears two plain rings on his left hand, a silver one on his index finger and a gold one on his middle finger.
He is always wearing a white mask that has a stitched-up mouth, nostrils and one eye. This mask's mouth and expression change to match Makoto's. Makoto also has a number of other masks that have a variety of colors and bear slightly different designs such as a yellow mask, a pink mask with blushed cheeks, a purple mask with a piercing gaze, a red angry mask and a white mask with a question mark instead of the normal eye. Underneath the mask, Makoto bears the same face as Yuma Kokohead, the person he was cloned from. Makoto's face, and by extension, Yuma's face, is fairly small and child-like, Makoto has large eyes with purple iris, a small nose and a large forehead which is fully visible due to Makoto's hair going down the left and right sides of his head.
After fusing with his Mystery Phantom, Makoto's clothes change from his standard suit to a long blue raincoat that stretches down to his knees. Makoto also gains black boots and a black undercoat. Makoto has a giant form that he can transform into. This giant form is incredibly muscular and stands at over ten times Makoto's normal height. This form also makes Makoto's long hair stand up straight, making it stick up multiple heads worth.
Personality[]
| “ | Makoto: Kanai Ward must remain shrouded in mystery for everyone here to live in peace. Even they haven't realized that they are homunculi yet. No...they must never know. It would be too cruel a fate. Their very existence...is this city's mystery. Yuma: They are the mystery? Makoto: Take a good look, aren't they pitiable? They're labeled as defective and must continue to live in a land without sun. Yuma: You made them that way! Makoto: To protect them! Yuma: ... Makoto: All of this...was to protect them. Do you understand how much I've endured for them? I've committed atrocities to keep them fed. If any died, they were swiftly taken to the abandoned village. When anyone asked about the color of their blood, I said it was caused by the rain! This is all for their sake! I did it for them! They're outcasts from this world who can only survive in a cage of rain! |
„ |
| ~ Makoto attempting to defend his crimes and deceptions to Yuma, while also declaring his delusional but sincere desire to protect the homunculi of Kanai Ward despite using inhumane methods and lies to do so at the expense of their wellbeing. |
Makoto is primarily a deceptive and manipulative individual who devotes himself to Kanai Ward with great caution and believes he must take extreme measures in order to protect the city and its homunculi, regardless of ethics or morality. As he is a clone of Number One, he adopts an emotionless mindset and strongly believes that any solution should be taken to resolve something, no matter how heinous it seems, like having Kanai Ward covered in eternal artificial rainfall, having it isolated to prevent the truth from being revealed, kidnapping and killing criminals on a global scale, and hiring the Master Detectives to be sent to investigate Kanai Ward so he could use them to remove Yomi Hellsmile from his position as Peacekeepers director. This is due to his cynical belief that allowing the truth to be exposed would cause the homunculi to be targeted for extermination by the Unified Government and that he has to protect them from this by any means at his disposal following seeing the homunculi swap out their original counterparts during The Blank Week Mystery.
His primary means of committing crimes for the sake of Kanai Ward involve his intellectual abilities, and as such, he is against using physical force on people to assert his power over them, in contrast to Yomi, not using any emotions to determine what he should do to protect the city. This allows him to control Kanai Ward without opposition and prevents him from being vulnerable to any of his enemies or the citizens who rebel against him as he rules over the city ruthlessly. The conspiracies used to gain his position as CEO allow him to conceal all of his misdeeds with ease, the citizens even wanting him to keep his position as CEO despite his refusal to keep it as part of his atonement for his crimes, regardless of his evident refusal to care for the citizens as individual people up until his redemption.
Up until being convinced by Number One to reveal the truth of Kanai Ward upfront, Makoto is very secretive and refuses to explain enough about himself until necessary, speaking in a humorous manner and avoiding giving out too much information about himself so that his true malicious goals aren’t shown clearly. He hides his face to ensure that his identity isn’t exposed, and he secures himself by remaining in Kanai Tower for the duration of his stay in Kanai Ward. Notably, despite Makoto’s heinousness, he is self-aware enough to realize that his actions are morally wrong and even feeling a painful sense of regret for committing himself to them, meaning that he can’t be considered a psychopath despite his ruthlessness.
Even though he is a ruthless ruler who partakes in immensely corrupt practices for the sake of protecting Kanai Ward, Makoto doesn’t take any pleasure in his corruption or his crimes and is unable to handle the guilt of all of his misdeeds, wanting to use ethical means to protect the city instead. He takes advice from the original Number One to reveal the truth to the citizens in the end, something that improves Kanai Ward’s conditions immensely, showing that he isn’t completely malicious and truly wants to help the city’s homunculi. Even though he wishes to be punished, he is denied the opportunity for this. Despite this regret, Makoto is determined to help Kanai Ward following his redemption and reverses all of his actions in the end, showing his commitment to his true goals.
Relationships[]
Homunculi of Kanai Ward[]
Makoto is extremely devoted to the defective homunculi of Kanai Ward and will do anything to protect them from scrutiny, believing that they aren’t deserving of it. He keeps them unaware of the fact that they killed their original human counterparts three years ago as part of his desire to protect the city and its homunculi, meaning he is willing to exploit their amnesia for his own ends. All of Kanai Ward’s oddities are his fault and are primarily in place for the purpose of protecting all of them, like the eternal rainfall and the city’s isolation. Unlike Yomi, when Makoto claims to want to protect the citizens, he is sincere in his declaration and truly wants to do anything he can to save them. However, he is uncaring for any ethical or moral standards when protecting them and is willing to commit any heinous act to accomplish his main goal.
He notably doesn’t regard the citizens of Kanai Ward, which the homunculi are cloned from, as people by disregarding their general autonomy and showing no empathy towards what they want first, deciding how they should live on their behalf instead. This means that he overall isn’t concerned about the homunculi as people and primarily only cares about what they are as a species, being willing to exploit their amnesia and take advantage of their tragedies for his own ends.
Amaterasu Corporation and the Unified Government[]
Even though he owns the company, Makoto despises Amaterasu Corporation itself and the Unified Government for their homunculus conspiracy. Dr. Huesca is one of his most prominent targets for his disdain as he conspired with Yomi to create the defective homunculi and then attempt to leak information on them years later, intending to eliminate them both before this could be accomplished. He hired the Master Detectives so that they could be used as pawns for his scheme to eliminate them, even hiring Fink the Slaughter Artist so he could accomplish this goal.
Makoto still wants to protect the company despite his hatred for it, as its employees are also defective homunculi, meaning he is devoted to protecting them equally as he is everyone else. The rest of Amaterasu Corporation are unaware of Makoto’s corrupt practices done for their sake due to their amnesia, meaning he keeps them unaware of the truth of themselves just as much as everyone else in Kanai Ward. This was the case up until he revealed the truth following his redemption.
He also views the Unified Government with the same level of hatred and has them isolate Kanai Ward as an alternative to killing the defective homunculi, blackmailing them about their unethical homunculus research to accomplish this. Their goal of wanting to kill them is notably rather offensive to him and he believes that having them isolated instead is a better solution for them.
Even though Makoto wants to protect the homunculi, he is unconcerned about the consequences of isolating Kanai Ward. He allows Yomi to continue abusing his power over the citizens in order to cover up the truth and only views the city’s isolation as a way to secure the defective homunculi, viewing it as a non-issue. He also refuses to address the consequences of Amaterasu Corporation becoming privatized due to said isolation and views isolating it as a simple necessity.
World Detective Organization[]
Makoto believes that the World Detective Organization is another pawn for him to use, having only hired the Master Detectives so he could use them as part of his scheme to oust Yomi Hellsmile from power. He is willing to only kill their leaders, Number One and Yakou Furio, as he notably leaves the other detectives alone once they served their purpose for him. He willingly tries to kill Number One in order to take his place and manipulates Yakou Furio into murdering Dr. Huesca by hiring Fink the Slaughter Artist to aid his and Yomi’s plot against the doctor, viewing him as disposable.
His identity as Number One’s homunculus allows him to manipulate the WDO into helping him kidnap death row inmates on a global scale and send them to the factory in the restricted area for them to be processed into meat buns for the residents to eat. This is the method he uses to help sustain Kanai Ward’s defective homunculi, feeding them by sating their need for human flesh by having them eat meat buns made from it. After achieving his scheme of mass kidnapping criminals and ousting Yomi by manipulating the WDO to his benefit, he tries to kill Number One after luring him inside of the Mystery Labyrinth. He reasons that he has to kill him so that he can protect the city by permanently isolating it from the world, wanting him to vanish inside the Labyrinth so he can usurp the organization for his own ends. While Makoto intended to do this, he reveals after Number One defeats him that he was using the Mystery Labyrinth to revise answers to Kanai Ward’s mysteries and was willing to sacrifice himself if his opponent’s answer was better. He instead agrees to reveal the truth to the citizens after agreeing to Number One’s terms.
Makoto has a complicated relationship with the Master Detectives, being willing to use them as pawns yet having the honor to spare them and listen to them, but despite having standards against pointlessly harming them, he views them the same way he does everyone else, that being as a pawn to use.
Fink the Slaughter Artist[]
Makoto hired Fink the Slaughter Artist to be used as part of his scheme to oust Yomi Hellsmile from power, manipulating Yakou Furio into using him as a scapegoat so that Makoto could take evidence of Yomi’s dealings with Dr. Huesca from his room. He made an offer for him to cooperate with the plot against Yomi, but this was mostly a lie as he was willing to have him killed the moment he played his role in the murder.
The reason why Makoto killed him contradicts his desire to protect Kanai Ward as Fink was one of its homunculi and a citizen. His only possible reason for doing so was to silence him so no one could discover that he was the one responsible for Dr. Huesca’s murder, as evidenced by him stating Fink “knew too much” before having him killed, and because of his role as an assassin-for-hire who could harm the citizens of Kanai Ward whenever he wanted.
Death Row Inmates[]
Makoto believes the death row inmates he kidnaps globally and processes into meat buns for Kanai Ward’s residents to eat are completely irredeemable and free for him to use as a food source instead of letting them be executed by the law, viewing them as fair game for his use as they were criminals who were already slated for execution. He refuses to use innocent people as a food source for Kanai Ward and only targets other criminals because they are already heinous enough to warrant being killed in such a fashion. Considering his desire to kidnap and kill other people in the first place, however, it’s uncertain if he also used innocent people alongside these criminals as well.
He views the criminals he kills as less than human and dubs them as “ingredients,” meaning he ignores their sentience as people regardless of their crimes. He was also willing to impersonate Number One of the World Detective Organization for this scheme and frame him for this crime so he could mastermind his mass kidnapping and blame Number One for committing it.
Makoto allows Kanai Ward to decide their food source once he reforms and no longer uses the meat from criminals as a means to sustain the homunculi of the city, having tricked them into eating them on the daily, and he doesn’t protest the stores being shut down once the truth is revealed. In fact, he allows the citizens to use the real Yuma Kokohead’s ramen as a substitute source instead.
Powers and Abilities[]
- Homunculi immortality and perfect biology: As a homunculus clone, Makoto is immortal, and doesn’t age past his mid-20s. Because he is the sole perfect homunculus in existence, he revives as normal upon being killed and is able to survive in sunlight, in contrast to the other defective homunculi, who are unable to survive in the sunlight and revive as zombies upon death instead.
- Genius intelligence: Being the homunculus clone of Number One, the greatest detective at the World Detective Organization, Makoto is naturally a genius. With his intelligence, Makoto is able to effortlessly build inventions and code machines far greater than almost anyone aside from potentially Dr. Huesca, Makoto uses this gift to build the machine that permanently coats Kanai Ward in storm clouds that blocks out the sun and code the AI at his home to only allow those that Makoto wishes to enter his home. Makoto also uses this genius to make elaborate plans, allowing him to manipulate both all of the Master Detectives, including an amnesiac Number One, as well as Yomi Hellsmile, the Director of the Peacekeepers.
- Forensic Forte: Coalescence: Since Makoto is the homunculus clone of Number One, he has access to Number One's Forensic Forte. His Forensic Forte is Coalescence, the ability that allows Makoto to use anyone else's Forte as long as he is holding their hands. Makoto can also copy other abilities such as a person's handwriting or supernatural abilities such as Yuma's Solution Blade.
- Solution Blade: After using his Coalescence Forte on Yuma Kokohead, Makoto was able to enter the Mystery Labyrinth and use his own Solution Blade. The Solution Blade is a blade that allows Makoto to cut through mysteries and launch large words at someone as a harmful projectile.
- Acrobatics & Swordsmanship: In the Mystery Labyrinth, Makoto's natural acrobatic skill and skill with a sword are vastly increased, allowing him to leap tens of meters through the air and easily perform somersaults and flips.
- Telekinesis: While inside the Mystery Labyrinth, Makoto gains the inexplicit ability to telekinetically lift and throw objects,
- Q manipulation: While inside the Mystery Labyrinth, Makoto has the ability to manipulate Qs, small creatures that are made from the Mystery Labyrinth in order to prevent people from solving the mysteries of the Labyrinth. With the Qs, Makoto can merge with the Mystery Phantoms they create to become a human-Mystery Phantom hybrid with this form giving Makoto a raincoat and many supernatural abilities.
- Flight: After fusing with his Mystery Phantom, Makoto is able to casually levitate and fly through with ease, giving Makoto the ability to fight in the air.
- Mystery Phantom duplicates: Makoto can make multiple Mystery Phantoms to aid him in battle. Makoto uses these Mystery Phantoms as a way to swarm his opponent, attack alongside Makoto or even as body shields to protect himself.
- Extra Solution Blades: With the power of the Mystery Phantoms, Makoto is able to generate additional Solution Blades, up to ten at a time, all of which he can telekinetically control with his mind. Makoto is able to use all of these Solution Blades at the same time so he can swing them all at once, use them to make a barrier to block attacks or combine them to make a make-shift drill.
- Giant Mystery Phantom form: If Makoto fuses with multiple Mystery Phantom duplicates, Makoto is able to transform into a giant muscular form. This form is as large as a building and wields a massive Solution Blade. It is defeated shortly after it is shown off so it is unknown if it has any additional abilities.
Quotes[]
Chapter 2: A Silent Curtain Call[]
| “ | Hi there, nice to meet you. I sure look suspicious, huh? | „ |
| ~ Makoto's first line, greeting Yuma in his home. |
Chapter 3: No Longer a Detective[]
| “ | Makoto: Oh? If you want to know who I am, does that mean you wish to be friends with me? Yuma: F-Friends? Makoto: Yes. I want to be your friend. How about you? |
„ |
| ~ Makoto trying to gain Yuma's trust. |
| “ | Oh, that's right. I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm sorry, it's been so long since I've built personal relationships that I don't remember the procedure. My name is Makoto Kagutsuchi. Nice to meet you. | „ |
| ~ Makoto introducing himself by name to Yuma. |
| “ | Oh, this? Interested? This is like a family heirloom to me. It has quite a history. It is said my family has demonic blood flowing through us. Normal people who gaze upon my face lose their sanity. That's why I must keep my face hidden, or I can't even hold a normal conversation. So what is this demonic blood, you might ask? I did my own research on the matter. It goes back 500 years. Back then, this land was comprised of over 200 kingdoms, great and small... | „ |
| ~ Makoto making up an elaborate lie about his mask. |
| “ | Yuma: That was the director of the Peacekeepers, wasn't it? You know him? Makoto: Hmm. Our relationship isn't so shallow that he's a mere acquaintance, but I wouldn't call it a friendship either. If I must call it something, I'd say he's like a shadow. We all have our own inseparable shadows, right? Yuma: Who...are you? Makoto: I'm just a man living at the highest point in town. Do you need to know more than that? Yuma: That doesn't tell me anything. Makoto: Haha, you sure are honest. |
„ |
| ~ Makoto being vague about his identity. |
| “ | Makoto: I love this city more than anyone. And more than anyone, I worry for its future. That's why I feel so gloomy about it all. Like the sky, a cold rain falls within my heart. By the way, I hear that you're a detective. I didn't know they still existed in this town. Yuma: I'm a trainee. There are other detectives much better than me...somewhere out there... Makoto: Naturally, this means you have some knowledge about this place. Yuma: I suppose so, yes... Makoto: Even as we speak, a disaster strikes Kanai Ward. You could say Amaterasu Corporation is responsible. For years now, the tragedies occurring in this city are the result of an upset of the power balance within Amaterasu. Yuma: The power balance? Makoto: The company has gotten too big. Each segment has grown independent and now lacks overall cohesion. As a result, the power structure has been completely thrown off balance. Amidst it all, the Peacekeepers took charge. They've imposed strict rules within the company and eliminated anyone who refused to obey. The corporation was on the brink of collapse, but the Peacekeepers managed to regain order. And I'm sure you can easily imagine what happened after that...right? Yuma: That "order" took hold over all of Kanai Ward. Makoto: You're a sharp one, detective. They fly the banner of order and force laws only convenient to themselves on the people. Both Amaterasu Corporation and Kanai Ward belong to them now. They do as they please. They can overturn laws on a whim, which permitted bribes to be exchanged at a rampant pace. This is why the city continues to erode away. So much so that this gloomy rain cannot wash it clean. |
„ |
| ~ Makoto explaining the Peacekeepers' corruption to Yuma, concealing his own responsibility for it happening in the first place. |
| “ | Yomi: ... What do you want? Makoto: Hello, Yomi. I'll take care of the rest, so you can leave now. Yomi: You intend to let these criminals run free? Just because you're the CEO of Amaterasu doesn't give you free rein to disrupt Kanai Ward's peace. Yakou: Amaterasu's CEO...is this weird guy in a mask?! Desuhiko: Hey, Yuma! When did you meet such a big shot?! Yuma: It just sorta...happened? Makoto: Hello, detectives... This is the first time we've met, besides Yuma. Huh? You want to know why I'm wearing this mask? Well... I was born a prince in a certain nation, but while still young, I was dragged into a revolution... The nation was overthrown and the royal family had their titles stripped away. My family was killed... I was the only one spared. The revolutionaries imprisoned me because they had other plans. I was forced to wear a mask to conceal my face. That mask was designed to never come off. And now, the mask has become my face. Kurumi: He's talking way too long and none of it sounds true at all! Shinigami: His story changed from last time. Yomi: I didn't ask about your history. Hand them over. Makoto: Yomi, I don't want to quarrel with you here. I really would hate for things to escalate. Just this once, may I ask you to withdraw? Yomi: ... You get one. There won't be a second. As for you sewer rats, you best be prepared. The next time you catch my eye, there will be no mercy. If you don't like it, go back to the sewers. |
„ |
| ~ Makoto lying about the reason he wears his mask after being exposed by Yomi. |
Chapter 4: The Imperfect Insider[]
Chapter 5: And Then I Was Gone[]
| “ | Please be mindful of sudden accidents while on the factory tour. If you are electrocuted, fall from a great height, or are mistaken as food and eaten…you will join your friend in front of you. So please practice caution. | „ |
| ~ Makoto, while pretending to be an automated announcer, warning Yuma about the hazards of the factory while Desuhiko's "dead body" is in front of him. |
| “ | Oh, how tragic... Despite all my warnings, it seems another one of your friends was devoured. No matter how strong they think they are, they're powerless against overwhelming numbers. | „ |
| ~ Makoto after Yuma finds Halara's "dead body". |
| “ | Have you grown tired of the tour yet? Because I sure have. Regardless, you deserve respect. You've lost your home, your friends, and I hear you've even lost your memories. What drives you to keep going to such lengths? Justice? Friendship? Or do you just go whichever way the wind blows? | „ |
| ~ Makoto confronting Yuma over the intercom, asking why he's still going. |
| “ | Exposing the truth doesn't always lead to salvation... You should know that better than anyone. You've learned it full well. | „ |
| ~ Makoto trying to push Yuma into abandoning his search for the truth. |
| “ | Yuma: This is my wish for everyone who has fallen victim, what I'm praying for! Makoto: Prayer is the loneliest activity one can partake in. Even if your friends prayed, none of you would reach another. But please, carry on with your solitary struggle. |
„ |
| ~ Makoto saying how pointless Yuma's actions are against him. |
| “ | We should turn off the alarm before we celebrate our reunion. Aren't you worried about Kurumi's body? Here, lend me a hand. | „ |
| ~ Makoto manipulating Yuma into turning back on the cloud-generating device as well as giving Makoto the chance to activate his Coalescence Forte. |
| “ | I don't owe you any explanation. But you've made it this far, so you deserve something. As you know, Amaterasu's experiment resulted in defective homunculi. Do you know the fatal flaw within all defective homunculi? One is an extreme decrease in intelligence when they're resurrected. In other words, they turn into zombies. They may be immortal, but upon returning from death, they become monsters that seek human flesh. The other fatal flaw... Is sunlight. When defective homunculi encounter sunlight, they become extremely stressed and lose control. They'll return to normal if you block out the sun, but while they're berserk, they lose all reason and memories. To be exact, it's an allergic reaction to ultraviolet rays. If left in this state, they will eventually die. But things will continue to spiral out of control. Once they die, they turn into zombies. In other words, sunlight is the greatest enemy of the defective homunculi. | „ |
| ~ Makoto telling Yuma all about the defective homunculi. |
| “ | Makoto: Without me, Kanai Ward would have never been rebuilt! I used everything at my disposal to cover up the tragedy that took place here. But there was no way for me to fix the entire city on my own. Yuma: Why...did you do it? Why do such a thing...? Makoto: You want to know why? I did it to protect Kanai Ward, of course. Because I love this city. I'd do anything for it, but you already know that! |
„ |
| ~ Makoto as to why he covered up the "Blank Week Mystery" and the truth about everyone in Kanai Ward being homunculi. |
| “ | Makoto: If all he [Yomi] did was use the Peacekeepers to push his weight around, that would've been fine. But, of all things, he was working with Dr. Huesca, trying to leak homunculus information. If that happened, the Unified Government wouldn't remain silent. Kanai Ward's secrets would be exposed to the world. Still...I couldn't expel him myself; the Peacekeepers had grown too strong in this city. Yuma: You pitted us against the Peacekeepers, and you got what you wanted by eliminating Yomi! Shinigami: So everyone gathering here was all part of that masked guy's plan? Yuma: And because you achieved your goal, you're trying to eliminate us now that we've outlived our usefulness?! |
„ |
| ~ Makoto telling Yuma why he lured the Master Detectives to Kanai Ward. |
| “ | Makoto: There's where you're mistaken... Coalescence isn't Shinigami's power. Yuma: Huh? Makoto: Coalescence is the Forte of the World Detective Organization's Number One. |
„ |
| ~ Makoto slyly revealing his and Yuma's true identity when Yuma discovers that he used his Coalescence to enter the Mystery Labyrinth. |
| “ | You discarded your pride as a detective and made a pact with a death god to go around killing people... You are dangerous. If you are not stopped, you will destroy all of Kanai Ward. That's why I must defeat you! To protect this city! | „ |
| ~ Makoto hypocritically condemning Yuma for executing criminals and ruining Kanai Ward in the process, despite being responsible of the exact same extremist behavior and the results of committing to it and antagonizing his enemies in the process. |
| “ | To eradicate all unsolved mysteries from this world and bring happiness to everyone... As your clone, I want the same thing. And that's why I'll protect everyone in Kanai Ward. These pitiful homunculi didn't ask to be made and neither did I! | „ |
| ~ Makoto during his final showdown with Yuma. |
| “ | This is the real perfect solution... The only difference is... The world hasn't caught up to me yet. The WDO belongs to me... The Unified Government will soon fall into my hands. Or so I believed. But I can only lie to the people of Kanai Ward for so long. We're coming to a tipping point. I know the end will come eventually. But... There's no turning back. What am I... Supposed to do? What else should I sacrifice? What can I do to save everyone? All this time, I've carried this burden alone... I can't... Take it anymore... Somebody... Help me... | „ |
| ~ Makoto beginning to break down after Yuma defeats him. |
| “ | I don't fight to lose. As the real me, you should know that. Only one of us will leave this Mystery Labyrinth... My intention was to review our answers here. It looks like the conclusion has been made. I realised something the first time I came to this city... There was no perfect solution for Kanai Ward's mysteries. There's a great contradiction here. In order to follow through with the perfect solution, I had to commit another crime. I despise unsolved mysteries more than anyone else. And yet I ended up creating even more. The mysteries have consumed me. | „ |
| ~ Makoto after being defeated by Yuma, lamenting on his actions. |
| “ | What's wrong? If you refuse, you will be yielding to me. I'll become death or the devil himself for the sake of Kanai Ward. Now, choose. Either you reap my soul, destroy the Mystery Labyrinth, and expose the truth of Kanai Ward...or give up and remain here forever... What is your solution?! | „ |
| ~ Makoto forcing Yuma to choose between killing Makoto or letting himself be killed by the Mystery Labyrinth. |
| “ | Makoto: What you're suggesting is no solution. You're just admitting defeat. If you stay here, Kanai Ward's mysteries will never be cleared. Happiness can't thrive wrapped in mystery. Who will save Kanai Ward in the real world? Yuma: You will be there for them. |
„ |
| ~ Makoto being trusted by Yuma into saving Kanai Ward. |
| “ | I've done everything alone until now. Even before coming to this city when I was the WDO's Number One... I've always decided everything on my own to try to reach the perfect solution. We share the same DNA, and yet... You're trusting someone else to find the solution for you? | „ |
| ~ Makoto being unsure in Yuma's plan to have others help him. |
| “ | Hmhm... You've got a good partner. I see... You used to solve everything on your own. But since you lost everything along with your memories... you accepted the help of your partner...and surpassed your former self. Haha, how ironic. Very well... You can count on me. I'll take care of the rest. I'm now going to cancel...my Coalescence... | „ |
| ~ Makoto praising Yuma before agreeing to his terms and leaving the Mystery Labyrinth. |
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Trivia[]
- Makoto's namesake is presumably taken from Makoto Naegi, the main protagonist of the Danganronpa franchise before Makoto's story was released, which is ironic considering their contrasting personalities and moral alignments. While Makoto Naegi is a hero with no corrupting qualities, Makoto Kagutsuchi is a cartoonishly heinous villain with redeeming qualities like being affable and well-intentioned despite said heinousness.
- Makoto is a twisted version of the usual anti-villainous antagonist whose legitimacy amplifies his heinous qualities rather than downplaying them, as despite having a sincere desire to protect Kanai Ward's homunculi and having a legitimate reason for empathizing with them to the point of extremism (due to being an unwillingly created homunculus himself), his villainous actions ultimately overshadow whatever sense of nobility he portrays himself to have which ends up reducing this desire for protection into an excuse for overwhelming local oppression and exploitative conspiracy than a trigger for audience sympathy, the usual reaction that the anti-villain archetype encourages.
- Makoto contrasts his company predecessors from the Danganronpa franchise who also serve as main antagonists, Junko Enoshima, Monaca Towa, Kazuo Tengan, and Tsumugi Shirogane, in many ways, though most predominantly that Makoto is wholly well-intentioned in his villainy even despite the extremes he goes to while the aforementioned villains are driven purely by sadism and a desire to spread despair.
- Makoto openly and successfully falsely befriends the main protagonist and much more convincingly pretends to be an ally to him up to his obvious reveal as the final antagonist, even more than Tsumugi is to Kaede Akamatsu and then Shuichi Saihara, even if for pragmatic reasons, because his position draws no suspicion, unlike how Tsumugi behaves as a false participant of the Killing School Semester, whose behavior is a contradiction to the situation the Ultimate students are trapped in, which causes everyone to avoid her and refuse to actually trust her to keep her mask as one of their allies. Makoto is a CEO who is clearly malicious just from his appearance alone, but his characterization allows him to take advantage of the fact that he has nothing openly suspicious or incredulous about him, which allows him to act as a false ally more convincingly. Tsumugi's blatant sarcasm throughout her attempt at being a killing game participant makes it increasingly obvious that she is deceiving everyone and has a real agenda because of the killing game's rules and general confinement, as well as that she is only a cosplayer, a role that doesn't necessitate the behavior she displays during the story.
- While he is a mastermind, he masterminds the control over a city and allows the citizens to kill each other simply through negligence, rather than intentionally masterminding a game where players are forced into killing each other for personal benefit. The citizens under his command are willingly choosing murder as a direct result of his control over Kanai Ward and as an indirect consequence of it. Even Monaca Towa outright sends Monokuma units out to kill the citizens, a clear contrast to Makoto who only causes many deaths through his refusal to discipline the Peacekeepers and the dystopia he has control over.
- His victims are amnesiac like the killing game participants, those being the defective homunculi and Number One of the World Detective Organization, who has to hide his identity to confront Makoto, but unlike the killing game masterminds, the homunculi were unintentionally given that amnesia by someone besides Makoto and Number One's amnesia was self-inflicted. However, this doesn't stop Makoto from choosing to exploit it for personal gain anyway.
- Makoto has legitimate tragedy in his backstory, making him inconsistent, being a homunculus that was created against his will who has to live with the guilt of causing the creation of Kanai Ward's defective homunculi, prompting him to protect them through extremely unethical, undesired means. The masterminds of the killing games have none of this and only created the games because they wanted to, not using their past to justify their reasoning for creating them.
- A more obvious but subtle aspect is that Makoto has a blatantly villainous appearance, being a short, lean man in purple with a daunting mask, a dissonant and high-pitched voice, and an unnatural hairstyle. The antagonists from Danganronpa all have unsuspecting designs that wouldn't look out of place in a normal environment and wouldn't arouse suspicion from others (Makoto's appearance and voice doing such for the other characters in-universe), including Monaca Towa who looks relatively innocent even with her odd color palette and Kazuo Tengan who still appears like a normal elderly man.
- Despite being the obvious main antagonist of the game due to his appearance and personality, as not only the CEO of Amaterasu Corporation, the main organization antagonizing the detectives, but also as the main culprit the detectives are investigating for their case, Makoto spends his appearances up to Chapter 5 doing nominally "heroic" acts as part of his true plot to oust Yomi Hellsmile from power, like saving Yuma after he washed up on the shore when Yomi destroyed the detective agency, stopping Yomi from attacking him in Chapter 3, helping him enter Amaterasu Corporation HQ in Chapter 4, and stopping Yomi from killing Yuma and Vivia at the end of Chapter 4 by exposing him after distracting him with the Fink the Slaughter Artist incident. All of these are solely steps in his main plan and don't make him actually heroic since they are solely part of his ousting plan, which would involve killing Yuma after success, and in the background, he aided in the Chapter 4 murder himself by introducing Yakou Furio to Fink, so all of these acts are completely superficial on his part.
- During the final battle, the game's protagonist, Yuma Kokohead/Number One, fails to recognize Makoto's blatant abuse of power as CEO of Amaterasu Corporation to cover up The Blank Week Mystery with the cloud machine and coercion of Kanai Ward's residents as a crime, and seems to immediately excuse him for it because of his intentions. It's only when his mass kidnapping in the "Great Global Mystery" case is brought up that Makoto's held accountable.
Notes[]
- ↑ Makoto is revealed to be Number One's homunculus but his original counterpart's name is never revealed. This challenges the credibility of his name really being "Makoto Kagutsuchi" considering it isn't confirmed if it's Makoto's biological name as Number One's clone.
- ↑ The residents committed their crimes due to believing they were still their human selves. Makoto hiding the truth of them actually being immortal clones created as a result of years of research would make him responsible for them killing each other (and other humans) thinking they were human too as they themselves still believed they were human and, therefore, mortal.
- ↑ The death row inmates he kidnaps and kills weren't sent to execution by him, meaning that he is executing them on behalf of actual law enforcement outside of Kanai Ward, where he doesn't have any jurisdiction to execute someone himself.
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 Villains
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Amaterasu Corporation Amaterasu Peacekeepers Others Civilians Others | ||