Social Link
Akihiko becomes an optional social link for the female protagonist in
Persona 3 Portable. Though originally the Emperor, his Arcana becomes
the Star for the social link. Once the female protagonist has a charm level of at least
Queen Bee, she can start to hang out with Akihiko after school on
Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The player can see the guilt Akihiko carries over his sister's death and his struggle to resolve his feelings by spending time with him. Eventually, he realizes he has been treating the protagonist like Miki but his real feelings for her are actually romantic love. Once the link is maxed out, Akihiko gives the protagonist a
rabbit doll, which allows for the fusion of the ultimate Star Arcana Persona:
Helel. The player also has the option of spending Christmas Eve together with Akihiko.
Rank 1

Akihiko brings the protagonist to Hagakure to get some food after school. He orders an extra large special for both of them, much to her disbelief. He tells her he doesn't think she'll have any problems eating that much, though. Akihiko compliments her remarkable skills, but worries they won't last long unless she eats enough. Somehow, she manages to finish the extra large ramen and Akihiko seems impressed. He asks her if she's up for going to another restaurant. With her stomach groaning, however, she decides it's not a good idea. After teasing her about giving up already, he agrees and says it's best for her not to get a stomachache. Laughing, he comments on how she must have a small stomach and that she won't be able to get stronger unless she eats right. The protagonist feels as if Akihiko is treating her like a child. Once he realizes she is glaring at him, he simply tells her he wont go easy on her just because she's a girl. As their leader, she needs to do her best and do a good job. They will also be working hard to back her up. Akihiko suggests they jog back to the dorm in order to settle their stomachs...
Answers
"Extra large!?"
"I can't eat another bite..."
Rank 2

The protagonist decides to accompany Akihiko while training and they run to Naganaki Shrine. He asks to take a break and comments on how it's nice to train outside since he usually is alone in his room or in the club room. She offers to train with him in the future and he agrees but warns her they will do more than running every day if she joins him. He regrets not changing into his training gear because he is drenched in sweat. After telling him not to catch a cold, Akihiko sneezes. He gets embarrassed and insists he is fine. Akihiko then asks if she wants to try the horizontal bar before going back to the dorm. He wonders if she can do a back hip circle and is amazed she can. He wants him to show her sometime...when she isn't wearing a skirt, that is. Akihiko then helps her up to sit on the bar. He says he is reminded of when he was a kid and suddenly falls silent while looking into the distance. He mutters to himself about needing to get stronger otherwise he won't be able to save anything. Akihiko suggests they head back and advises her to take a shower when they get back so she doesn't catch a cold, either.
Answers
"I'll train with you, if you want."
"Don't catch a cold."
"Yes I can!"
Rank 3

As Akihiko and the protagonist are heading to the Beef Bowl Shop in Iwatodai strip mall, two Akihiko fangirls spot them. They rush up to him and the protagonist recognizes them from her class. He is completely oblivious to their fangirling and asks them to move out of the way because they can't get inside. The girls ask him if he has a girlfriend because they are looking for boyfriends. The girls keep glancing at the protagonist with hostility while talking to him. He doesn't answer their question and asks them again to please let them through. He offers to talk with them another time if they want to talk to him. The protagonist notes she can feel the glares of the two girls so intensely that it's as if her skin was burning off. Regardless, she goes inside the restaurant with him and he seems relieved to get away from the two girls. After they eat, they walk out and note the girls from before are gone. Akihiko notices something is off and asks her what's wrong. The protagonist responds by agreeing how great the food was, which makes him happy. However, he realizes she must be thinking about the girls and wonders if they wanted to have beef bowls as well. Akihiko regrets making them leave and the protagonist realizes he struggles with recognizing female emotions. She asks him what his type is and he thinks she is referring to beef bowls. Realizing she meant girls, he mutters something about not wanting to deal with this kind of thing. Suddenly he gets tense and blushes. He tells her he had been told whenever a girl asks that question to respond with "girls like you," but he can't bring himself to say it! Cursing Junpei, the two head back to the dorm.
Answers
"Let's go, Senpai!"
"Yes, it was great."
"Yeah, they looked hungry."
"So, what's your type?"
Rank 4

After school, Akihiko is with the protagonist outside of the dorm and is completely silent. She asks if he isn't feeling well. Apologizing, he asks if she is dating Junpei. She informs him they are not dating and he explains he heard a rumor that they were dating. Assuring him it's okay, he seems relieved to find out the rumors were false. Akihiko apologizes again for not only listening to the rumor, but being rude enough to confront her about it. He promises if he hears anyone say it again that he'll tell them it isn't true. Not realizing they were already back at the dorm, he asks if she wants to go somewhere before going home. Correcting himself, he asks if she wants anything to eat. She notes that he seems to have brightened up, like a major weight has been lifted from his shoulders. Was he worried about her? The two then go out to eat before heading back to the dorm.
Answers
"Are you feeling sick?"
"Don't even joke about it."
"It's all right."
"You don't have to do that."
"Something spicy!"
Rank 5

Akihiko brings the protagonist to a sweet shop in the Iwatodai strip mall, stating he heard it was popular. He suddenly frets about whether guys are allowed to go in because it's not the type of place most guys would go. Despite being embarrassed, the two enter the shop and share a piece of cake. Akihiko seems a little displeased at how sweet the cake was and she wonders if he didn't like it. He informs her that he doesn't hate sweets, but he doesn't eat them very often so he was surprised at how sugary it was. He wanted to bring her there because he also heard that girls like to eat sweet things and was trying to do something she might like. Even so, the cake was like having a lump of sugar in his mouth! He then rambles about how Yukari gives him sweet snacks sometimes before asking if she wants to get some real food. Suddenly, the two girls from the other day show up and ask him why he is there with "Junpei's girlfriend." They accuse her of stealing boys when she already has a boyfriend and Akihiko asks them to leave because he is there with the protagonist right now. Taking her hand, he leads her all the way back to the dorm. He apologizes if he hurt her hand and also for what happened. She insists it wasn't his fault and he's glad to hear that. He tells her even people in his class are saying things about him showing off and taking someone else's girlfriend. Even so, he still had fun today. He suggests they go out for pancakes next time because he likes them.
Answers
"Haven't you ever been in here?"
"Did you not like it?"
"I'm not stealing anybody."
"It's not your fault, Senpai."
Rank 6

This time, Akihiko and the protagonist go to Wild Duck Burger to eat. They manage to find a table despite the restaurant being very crowded. He begins talking about something that happened with Mitsuru the other day when a child starts screaming. The mother's voice also starts to rise while arguing with the boy. Even though the shouting is hurting her ears, the protagonist decides to go grab something else. He asks her to get him some coffee while she is up and is apparently not bothered by the commotion at all. By the time she gets back to their table, the boy and his family are leaving. Smiling, Akihiko notes the boy was full of energy and that others shouldn't get mad at him for acting like a child when he is one. All of the sudden, Akihiko becomes quiet and serious. He asks her if she thinks he is strange and is relieved to hear her say he's normal. He continues by explaining sometimes people tell him he's a weird guy or that he acts strange. Normally comments like that wouldn't bother him but back in the day they used to say it was because he didn't have parents. Not that he could do anything about that, anyway. When he was a kid, he wanted to show them they were wrong. Smiling, he says that's all in the past so it doesn't matter. Apologizing because she probably looked confused, he explains he doesn't have parents. He and his sister grew up in an orphanage...but his sister is long gone, too. Realizing she doesn't have parents he verbally regrets bringing it up. He then changes his mind, realizing that is the reason he wanted her to hear what he had to say. He can depend on her to understand him. Once again apologizing for bringing up such a topic, he says they should head back.
Answers
"I'm going to get something else..."
"He's just a child."
"You're normal."
Rank 7

The protagonist notes that even though Akihiko brought her to Hagakure, he seems oddly quiet. He speaks up and awkwardly asks her how she is doing physically. Even after telling him she is fine, he still looks troubled. He slowly explains that he feels angry when he watches her fight. Realizing his choice of words was poor, he tries to replace "angry" with "irritated" and then "nervous." Wondering if she is unreliable, he smiles and says she is doing a great job. He falls silent again before asking if there was a way for her not to fight. Akihiko quickly apologizes and says he shouldn't have asked that because she's been trying harder than all of them. She wonders where this is coming from suddenly but he is just as confused as she is. He sighs. Deep down, the real reason he doesn't want her fighting is because he's worried about her. After admitting his concerns, he avoids her face and looks at the ground. He tells her to eat up and neither of them speak another word to each other on the way home.
Answers
"I'm all right."
"What should I do?"
"Do I seem unreliable?"
"What's the matter?"
Rank 8

Akihiko is once again quiet today. He thanks her for coming out to the shrine with him. He seems to be at a loss for words until he asks her if he can talk to her about something. Not sure he has everything in his head the way he wants to say it, he slowly begins to speak. Akihiko tells her about Miki and how he couldn't save her even though he was the only person she had. There weren't any other kids her age at the orphanage so she didn't have any friends. Therefore, she'd always tag along with him. Biting his lip, he wonders out loud why she had to die. She was too small, never knew her parents' faces, never had good food to eat or toys to play with. She had nothing. Akihiko states with trembling lips that there is some kind of saying about how it's a sin to be alive. She pleads with him how that isn't true and he says that he knows and has accepted she's gone. He can't seem to do anything about the sadness and anger he feels, though. Akihiko then says he wanted to ask her to help him bear the burden. He knows it's "terrible" for him to ask her that and apologizes while hiding his face from her. Akihiko then tells her that he might be seeing Miki in her, but if not, his feelings for her are... Not finishing his sentence, he suggests they head back.
Answers
"I'm happy to be with you."
"Yes, of course."
"That's not true!"
Rank 9

Akihiko brings the protagonist to the roof of the school without telling her why. He simply comments on how nice the wind is today. She asks if he comes to the roof often and he explains that Shinjiro used to go there when he was cutting class. He would always fall asleep so Akihiko would go get him after his club activities. Suddenly serious, he asks if she remembers the stuff he told her about Miki. He says that he's tired of losing what's important and he thought it would be better to simply not let things get important so he didn't have to risk it. Lately, however, he thinks differently. Akihiko looks straight into her eyes and says he has to work to protect everything precious to him, including Ken, Mitsuru and her. He'll take care of it all. The protagonist notices that he is suddenly glaring at her and encourages him to tell her what he wants to say. Embarrassed, he says he was getting to it. Turns out he wasn't actually glaring, but rather is nervous. Akihiko tells her he really liked spending time with her...or he used to, anyway. But now, he feels tense and on edge. She says he's in love and he says it twice, realizing "love" really does describe his feelings for her. Suddenly he gets embarrassed, realizing he confessed his feelings for her. He wants to know how she feels as well. "Will you be my girl?" He asks. Akihiko is ecstatic when she says "yes!" and quickly embraces her. Feeling awkward, he lets go and apologizes. Laughing nervously, he comments how it got awkward all of the sudden. The two talk quietly on the roof until the sun goes down.
Answers
"Do you come here often?"
"Tell me what you need to say."
"What about now?"
"You're in love."
"Yes!"
Rank 10 - Friends

Once again at Hagakure, Akihiko curses because it's not a good place to have a serious conversation. After she asks what he wanted to talk about, he gives her a rabbit doll he says looks just like her. He continues by saying there was a time where he thought he was just seeing Miki in her, but when he bought the doll, he knew that wasn't the case. Passing by toy stores always made him think of Miki. However, when he saw the doll at the store, her faced popped into his head, not Miki's. Once he realized that, he thought of Miki smiling. Akihiko tells the protagonist if it hadn't been for her, he might have never gotten over what happened. He would have just pretended that he did. He wonders how things would have been if she had never came here because they've gone through so much together. They will also be together in the future for more things...but no matter what, they'll be fine. They are friends who share the same fates and he hopes everyone will be able to work together. Akihiko then asks her to tell him if she's going through a rough time because she seems like the type to deal with something in silence. The two then spend a long time chatting about various things.
Answers
"What'd you need to talk about?"
Rank 10 - Lovers

If the protagonist says yes to being Akihiko's girlfriend, rank 10 looks a bit different. Rather than going to Hagakure, Akihiko nervously asks if she wants to come to his room back at the dorm. Once in his room, he apologizes for not having anywhere to sit but the floor, starts to look for a cushion and then remembers to offer her something to drink. Clearly, he is restless. When she says she is fine, he wonders out loud if his room weirds her out. She tells him that his room fits him and he likes that answer until he realizes that probably means
he is the weird one. Akihiko looks at the floor and tells her this is all new for him. He's never had a girl in his room before because he never thought he needed a girlfriend. Akihiko then gives her the rabbit doll, saying he wanted to give it to her today. Like rank 10 (friends only) mentioned previously, he tells her the doll looks like her and explains how he was able to get over Miki's death thanks to her. Unlike the friendship rank 10, however, Akihiko voices how the protagonist has always been there for him through the good and bad. He also wants her to know that he will always be there for her, too. "From now on, we have each other," he reassures her. Akihiko turns red and tells her how she means a lot to him and that he loves her. He wonders how things would have gone if she hadn't come here and quickly assures he meant Port Island in general and not his room! Blushing madly, he says he won't lose control just because he let her in his room. She starts laughing and he tells her not to laugh. Smiling himself, he notes he can't act like this around anyone else. The scene ends with Akihiko asking her if she minds calling him "Aki." After she does so, he thanks her and assures her he will make her happy. He also hopes in time she will find more to love about him as well. The two spend a long time together.
Answers
"It's all right."
"It fits you."
"Never had a girl in your room?"
Call him "Aki"
Christmas Eve Date

On Christmas Eve, Akihiko will send the protagonist a text message during the lunch break asking if she is free that evening. If she accepts, he comes to get her from her classroom after school. Akihiko takes her to Paulownia Mall and they admire all the lights and decorations. After walking around for a while, he offers to sit down and tells her he has a present for her. He hands her a music box while blushing. The player then has the option to give him a gift as well. Akihiko enjoys any of the homemade sweets like sugar cookies or sweet fries. He says they look delicious and suggests they eat them together. He even puts one in her mouth! After enjoying the gift, he admits how Christmas never meant much to him growing up--it was actually more painful than anything. The town was always lit up, but "Santa" never came to visit him. Smiling, he says Santa came for Miki, of course. But this year, he got a gift too. It starts to get late and Akihiko explains she can keep things like jewelry inside the music box he gave her. He plans to give her something new to put in it every year! She asks him if she can move closer and he smiles wondering if she is cold. Noting her ears are like ice, he then asks if she wants to come to his room. They spend all night together. The screen goes black and Akihiko says, "Merry Christmas."
Answers
"It does, huh?"
"Can I move closer?"
Rooftop Scene

At the very end of the game, it is possible for the player to get a rooftop scene with Akihiko. After Aegis talks to the protagonist, they hear Akihiko rapidly approaching. He is out of breath and gasping for air, but is relieved to have finally found her. He explains how he couldn't find her and was worried she had gone off somewhere. He embraces her tightly. Akihiko tells her he finally remembers everything--Tartarus, the battles and how he fell in love with her. He also apologizes for forgetting it all. As the footsteps of the others are getting louder, he assures her that everyone remembers now. The protagonist feels her eyelids getting heavier and she can't hold on much longer. Finally closing her eyes, Akihiko says, "and starting now, we'll never be apart."
b a c k . c l e a r . f o r w a r d Resonance is © Samantha, however Akihiko, Mitsuru and Persona 3 are © Atlus and other rightful owners. Resonance is a part of AFTER-DEATH.ORG.