Makoto Naegi is a major character in the Danganronpa series and debuted in Monokuma Rising, though he chronologically first appeared in Shadow Over Gotham.
Canon[]
Makoto Naegi is a major character from Danganronpa, making his first appearance in the first entry, Trigger Happy Havoc.
Makoto was selected to attend Hope's Peak Academy by winning a random lottery. Hope's Peak granted him the title of “Ultimate Lucky Student”, a title given to one randomly-chosen student once a year.
After a year of attending the academy, a tragedy occurred that plunged the world into chaos and despair. Makoto and the rest of his class agreed to seal themselves inside the school building to protect themselves from the destruction outside. As it turned out, "Ultimate Despair", the group responsible for causing the tragedy in the first place, was in Makoto's midst.
Stripped of their memories of the past two years, Makoto and his class were forced into participating in the School Life of Mutual Killing incident by a bear named Monokuma, who was being controlled by the despair-obsessed Junko Enoshima. With his classmates' solid support around him, Makoto managed to defeat Junko, and the survivors were free to leave the school. With that, Makoto, with the six survivors who survived the incident, joined the Future Foundation.
Pre-Convergence[]
After Makoto and the Future Foundation dealt with what remained of "Ultimate Despair", Makoto found himself in Gotham City, an unwitting participant in the Gotham City Incident.
Plot Involvement[]
Shadow Over Gotham[]
Makoto was a prominent figure in the event, assisting the group in their efforts to find Bane.
During the third chapter, Makoto was kidnapped by Junko Enoshima and was tortured by her. Junko eventually got bored and let him go.
After the Gotham City Incident, Makoto returns to the Future Foundation, having been separated from the group and tortured by Junko Enoshima until she got bored and found a means to travel to the Dark Place through the despair generated from the hallucinations. His report is met with disapproval by Kyosuke Munakata, who decides to put Kyoko Kirigiri as the head of Makoto's division as he believes Makoto is unequipped to combat despair. Kyosuke readies to meet with G.O.R.E. and sends Makoto to an alternate version of their own world to recruit new members.
The Coalition was formed shortly thereafter Kyosuke Munakata entered a partnership with Darth Rex. They recruited many fighters, including Jennifer, who grew to become close friends with Makoto. When the Coalition got their hands on some Virtual Reality systems originally designed by the Mira-Curtiss Partnership group, Makoto, Jennifer, and Darth Rex, devised a plan to turn the system into a training program for Coalition trainees.
Unfortunately, the Arch Demon intervened and managed to get a virus into the system, trapping Jennifer, Leia Rolando, and all of the potential Coalition recruits. Makoto and the Coalition could only watch as their program was turned into yet another Murder Game.
Monokuma Rising[]
Though it took three days, Makoto and Darth Rex managed to insert themselves into the system. They had limited control inside and could do little more than guide the players in the right direction. Makoto urged everyone to spare Jennifer, who was about to be executed by Monokuma. Though there was a chance Jennifer could be harboring a piece of Akibahara, Makoto chose to believe in his friend.
Thankfully, the players decided to spare Jennifer, and it turned out she wasn't harboring any part of the Arch Demon at all. Makoto rounded up the survivors after the incident and apologized profusely. He offered them a place within the Coalition, or the chance to return home.
The Reapers' Game[]
In the aftermath of the Shibuya Incident, Cosmo talks to Makoto about a vision he has received. Though they do not state what the vision is, the pair worry that it poses a great threat to the multiverse. Cosmo desires to meet with others to help warn of the threat, and Makoto agrees to assist him.
Fusion[]
During the aftermath of the Fuse Incident, Makoto expresses his concerns over a new threat that is about to make itself apparent in the near future with Kieran, but before they can get very far in the conversation, Jennifer alarmingly informs them that key data concerning recruit profiles and VR data had been stolen.
The Ultimate Game[]
Makoto had a prominent background role throughout the event, often appearing through a communications link to provide intel and aid the Survivors every so often. Along with the rest of the Coalition, he would appear in the climactic battle, delivering a speech to the Arch Demon that despite all the despair that he had managed to inflict across the multiverse, it would never amount to anything, as the hope that the Survivors carried would always win out in the end, raising the Survivors' morale.
After the fall of the Arch Demon and the defecting of Revan, it is known that the sabotaged Ultimate Nullifier is placed into the hands of Makoto and the Coalition, who keep the object just in case that a threat similar to the Arch Demon would appear once again. With that, Makoto returns to base, continuing to maintain the Coalition's place as an organization to uphold the peace throughout the multiverse.
Musings of a Captain-Commander[]
He briefly appears in the final act of the short story in a panic, breaking the news to Kieran and the rest of the organization of Mary's death after the events of The Grand Hotel.
Monokuma's Awakening[]
When Kyoko would return to the Coalition HQ in the aftermath of the Daughter Incident, by a considerable coincidence, it would turn out that she had returned on the day of Makoto's twentieth birthday. While she had just missed the party, she would manage to stumble upon Makoto by himself in the middle of the corridors, the two of them shocked to see each other, Kyoko more because of how long it had been and how he had changed, and Makoto surprised that she was actually alive and back again. After exchanging some banter to make up for the lost time, the two of them would pull each other into a tight hug, as Kyoko had finally returned home.
However, the happy occasion of the reunion would be short-lived. As Kyoko reassumed her position as a leader of the Coalition, she was quickly able to sense that something was wrong with the atmosphere of the place, deducing that there was strange friction between Makoto and Kieran. Deciding that the best way to get answers was to dig into Makoto's personal computer and find any confidential files concerning matters that they might have disagreed upon, Kyoko stumbles upon a number of classified files, particularly one that involved Ilona.
The narration states that unbeknownst to Kyoko and Makoto, someone else had broken into Makoto's computer before she had, and also accessed this very same data.
Civil War[]
Makoto was a prominent figure during the event. He, and Cosmo, spearheaded the side that believed Ilona was a threat and needs to be regulated. He clashed with other members of the Coalition over these beliefs.
Do No Harm[]
Makoto appears at the beginning, visiting Jennifer and striking up a conversation with Jude Mathis and Wanda Maximoff about the fate of the comatose victims and the correlation to the level of Malevolence inside of them.
House of M[]
Before the events of the Eveline Incident, Makoto and Jude Mathis were invited to the Baker residence by Wanda Maximoff. At some point, the pair ended up being hunted by Wanda and members of the Baker family. While they were investigating an escape, the two found a video camera. Makoto opted for Jude to film as much as they could before they were attacked by a possessed Mia Winters shortly after. The two escaped from both Mia and Marguerite Baker before being confronted by Wanda. The Scarlet Witch had teleported Jude away, and was about to kill Makoto before Zoe intervened, telling Makoto to escape. Before he could escape, though, he was hit by Wanda's magic.
Whether it was Wanda's intention or not, Makoto fell into the Dark Place after this, losing his sense of self. When the main group entered the house, they ended up inside an ilusionary scenario designed to keep Makoto happy. He appeared before the group in a fancy suit and tie, offering Kyoko a dance. He seemed to forget the Coalition Civil War and much of his memories, thinking Kyoko and he were living a simple, happy life as a married couple. He conversed with the group before Monokuma attacked them. As Monokuma was only a manifestation of Makoto's anxiety, the bear was quickly defeated by Wanda.
He was later forced to partake in Lucas Baker's game, however he was unconscious at the beginning, only awakening halfway through the second chapter. He entered the garage with Kyoko, Teth-Adam, and T'Challa, where he was forced to play Lucas' weakest link game which resulted in T'Challa's death. He later revealed that he was partially responsible for killing T'Challa in an attempt to keep Kyoko safe.
He entered the master bedroom with Kyoko and Noembelu, where he revealed his hand in T'Challa's death. Kyoko assaulted Makoto because of his actions, although he felt he deserved her scorn. When Kyoko let up, he assisted the two in their escape of the bedroom, however, he opted to stay in the bedroom while the others made their escape.
During the fight against Jack Baker, he was still in the bedroom, calling out to hear if anyone was there. He decided to escape the room for Kyoko's sake.
After meeting up with the group, he decided to stay with an injured Shane Walsh, splitting from the group once again. Following the reuniting of the group, he offered to be killed in order for the group to advance, revealing to the group his part in T'Challa's death.
Following the death of Captain America, he sacrificed himself to save the others, dying alongside Shane, however, he was brought back alongside Jude, Captain America, and Shane by Thomas Zane in order to help the group defeat Eveline.
In the aftermath of the event, Mom Lalonde, now a member of the newly established ODMA, appeared before Kyoko and Makoto, interrupting an uncomfortable exchange between the two of them to deliver a thumb drive full of information regarding Umbrella's activities, believing it to be better in their hands, and also as a token of goodwill.
Uncertainty Principle[]
Following the Eveline Incident, Makoto tried to make it up to Kyoko by offering her dinner. However, that didn't go too far, as it was interrupted by Ollerus, who told them about the incoming threat of Othinus.
Right Hand of the Magic God[]
Makoto played a background role in the event, appearing during the opening briefing and interacting with others such as Severa.
He reappeared later in the third chapter, where he assisted in trying to fend Knowhere off from the Revanchist forces, and even attacked Marian Slingeneyer.
Fighting of the Spirit[]
Makoto initially appeared as a background figure during the Revanchist War, only appearing during Coalition board room meetings, and giving status reports on the Great Spirits.
He joined the main group on their mission to Star Forge, where he encountered Lucas Baker once again. He assisted the group in their escape of the science room. Although he didn't do much, he was present for the final battle against Revan and his forces.
Between the Lines[]
During the Revanchist War, following the third chapter, Makoto was attending a meeting alongside Kyoko, Ollerus, Doppo Kunikida, Paladin Danse, Touma Kamijou, Othinus, and Fiamma of the Right. He and the others were discussing plans to protect the remaining Great Spirits, when the meeting was barged in by Will Vandom, who was overtaken by Malevolence.
She attempted to kill Othinus, but was stopped by the others attending the meeting.
Zero Hour[]
Makoto appears in the fifth chapter of the event, trapped in a loop of his home world alongside his friends, including Kyoko Kirigiri and Toko Fukawa. Though his memories of his experiences with the multiverse are suppressed, as is the case with others in the looped worlds, he faintly begins to remember his true past.
In the final chapter, Billy Kaplan manages to restore the memories of Kyoko and Makoto, who accompany the group into the next and final world the group travels to in order to face off against Revan and his forces.
In the epilogue, in the month following Revan's defeat and the restoration of the multiverse, Makoto and Kyoko decide to formally disband the Coalition, leaving the stability of the multiverse in the hands of the other organizations, between the United Universes and ODMA, believing the multiverse to be safe now from total annihilation for the time being. On the world of Avalon, Makoto makes this disbanding public, along with the announcement that he and Kyoko will be settling down in Avalon to help set up a new governing body known as the Round Table.
Afterward, Kyoko is seen talking to Makoto alone, reconciling their relationship together as they prepare the next stage of their lives on Avalon, making peace with one another.
Character Relationships[]
- Monokuma - A major antagonist in the Danganronpa series who makes his debut in Monokuma Rising. Though it was a different Monokuma (and ultimately, Junko Enoshima) who trapped Makoto and his class in Hope's Peak Academy, the virus made use of Makoto's memories to create a data Monokuma to host the Murder Game.
- Kyoko Kirigiri - A major character from Danganronpa who debuts in Chillin' in Columbia. The two of them are very close friends and partners, having known each other since their shared experience in the School Life of Mutual Killing. Together, they joined the Future Foundation, and later, formed the Coalition. It is believed that they share a mutual romantic attraction to each other, but have not pursued each other. As of Civil War, their relationship has become somewhat strained after certain revelations concerning the Coalition were brought to light. Ultimately, they mend their relationship by the end of Zero Hour.
- Byakuya Togami - A major character from Danganronpa who debuted in School Daze. Like with Kyoko, Makoto is considered a close and old partner to Byakuya's, Byakuya having gone through the same tribulations as the two of them, and while their personalities clash with each other from time to time, Makoto trusts him dearly.
- Jennifer - The protagonist of Rule of Rose who also debuted in Monokuma Rising. Makoto and Jennifer grew close after the girl joined the Coalition. Makoto begged the players to spare Jennifer, even though there was a chance that she was corrupted by Akibahara.
- Darth Rex - The founder of G.O.R.E. original to the Convergence Series who debuts in Monokuma Rising. Though the pair are from different organizations, the Coalition puts them together on many of the same missions. Makoto is a little intimidated by the man at times, but they've become trusted allies to each other.
Trivia[]
- In Monokuma Rising, the virus infecting the training program used Makoto's memories to construct Monokuma, the school, and Jabberwock Island inside the system. It also made use of Jennifer's memories to torture her and those who "died."
- Makoto means sincerity and honesty. It can also mean truth.
- "Naegi" means sapling.
- Having been in 15 stories, Makoto has made the most appearances throughout the Convergence Series.