The Bank Heist.

Upon entering his lavishly adorned club, Junya Kaneshiro's brows were knitted in a mixture of frustration and contemplation. The day's profits had fallen short of expectations, necessitating an unwelcome dip into his own reserves.

"This is just a temporary setback," he murmured to himself, a mantra to soothe his discomfort. "Once the elections are behind us, the sacrifices will pay off."

His mind wandered to Akira, the audacious young man who had promised to impress him and then vanished without a trace. Kaneshiro couldn't shake off a gnawing irritation at the boy's absence. 

Recently, the idea of creating a right-hand man he could trust had taken root in his thoughts, yet none of his current underlings seemed to possess the requisite edge. This realization only served to deepen his disdain for them, casting them in his eyes as nothing more than useless, expendable tools.

Striding toward his favorite seat with a scowl etching deeper into his features, Kaneshiro prepared for his customary ritual of lavish spending to quell his unrest. There was a peculiar comfort in the act of spending money to momentarily forget one's troubles.

However, as he settled into the plush leather, an unexpected sight caught his eye. A solitary crimson letter perched ominously atop his briefcase.

With a mixture of curiosity and apprehension, he seized the letter. Looking at it, he saw a meticulously crafted letter that used magazine cutouts as letters. The message was clear and menacing:

"Sir Junya Kaneshiro, the money-devouring sinner of gluttony. You indulge in scamming others with horrendous methods that target minors exclusively. We have decided to make you confess all your crimes with your own mouth. We will take your distorted desires without fail. From, The Phantom Thieves."

A surge of unease momentarily gripped Kaneshiro, quickly giving way to a simmering anger. 

"Fucking useless bastards can't even stop someone from sneaking into our hideout." He said as he grabbed the letter and threw it in the trash. The next moment calling Taro to see if the people outside had noticed anyone suspicious.

— — —

Bathed in the ethereal glow of a full moon, the floating bank stood out against the night sky. The Phantom Thieves shrouded in the cover of darkness, infiltrated the seemingly impenetrable fortress with ease, even amidst the high security level. 

The 'Golden Ticket' provided by Kaneshiro to Ren rendered the elaborate security measures futile as they moved unhindered.

The guards all followed Ren's commands as he positioned them out of the way, ensuring their escape route once the Palace began to collapse. Within the half-hour mark of their infiltration, the group now stood in front of the elevator that would take them down into the treasure room.

Under Ren's strategic guidance, the guards unwittingly secured their own demise, clearing the way for the Thieves' eventual escape. Merely half an hour into their mission, they found themselves before the gateway to their goal. The elevator to the treasure room.

Without a sound, the group descended into the heart of the vault. Yet, anticipation turned to dismay as they were confronted not by their prize but by an imposing barrier. A gigantic steel vault door.

Ryuji's frustration was palpable, his voice echoing off the walls. 

"Damn it, how are we going to get to it now." His gaze turned to Ren, searching for a sliver of hope. "Do you think your security pass can open it?"

Ren's silent head shake was answer enough, prompting Mona to consider a more direct approach. But before action could be taken, the room was filled with the echo of Kaneshiro's voice, a mixture of disappointment and resignation bleeding through the speakers.

"I should have known…."

The group looked around the room as they heard the sounds of hydraulics fill the room. The massive vault door opened to reveal a massive piggy-bank-shaped robot, on top of which Kaneshiro stood.

"Everyone is either useless or a traitor, isn't that right, Akira?" His accusation sliced through the air. The room was bathed in a sinister red from the emergency lights, and the loud alarms followed right after.

Ren, noticing the direction this was heading, tried to speak once again to 

"Come on, Kaneshiro. I don't want to fight you, but I need to take your treasure. It's for your own good. I wouldn't lie to you. After all, I look up to you." His bow, a gesture of feigned respect, did little but fan the flames of Kaneshiro's rage.

Kaneshiro's retort was a tempest. His trust eroded to nothing. 

"That's enough! You have made it clear enough that I can't trust anyone. The only thing I can trust is myself and the money I possess." 

As his declaration thundered, the vault transformed into a battlefield of floating bills, which coalesced into formidable origami guardians, ready to defend their creator at any cost.

As he shouted, his body began to convulse. His expensive suit split open to reveal wings akin to those of a fly. His face morphed disturbingly, and his eyes now mirrored the multifaceted gaze of an insect, making him look like a hybrid of human and insect.

Amid the ensuing chaos, Ren, grasping the gravity of their situation, summoned Ame-no-Uzume with a sense of urgency.

"Ame-no-Uzume, now!" he commanded, attempting to disrupt Kaneshiro's metamorphosis with a targeted wave of lightning. 

However, the piggy bank fortress, bristling with concealed armaments, unleashed a volley of gunfire in retaliation. Dismissing the attack, the Thieves jumped out of the way, narrowly evading the deadly barrage, as Kaneshiro's voice boomed through the vault, laden with menace.

"I will devour all of you and turn you into my slaves. I'll squeeze you for every penny that you are worth. And you, Akira, make sure you learn that messing with me doesn't come for free," Kaneshiro declared, his voice echoing ominously as he vanished into the depths of the piggy bank behemoth.

Surrounded by a legion of origami guards, the Thieves exchanged glances, a silent pact of unspoken words and shared resolve.

"There's nearly infinite money here, so he can probably continue summoning the guards. Let's try to find a way to penetrate the piggy bank's defense. Once we do, Kaneshiro will have nothing protecting him, and the battle will be over." Ren shouted as his gaze started analyzing the robot.

Then, turning to the group he quickly made a decision.

"Siren, Panther, Mona, you three keep the guards in check. Queen, Skull, try to find a way in."

Ren started his attack by calling forth Ame-no-Uzume once again. As he unleashed his Persona's fury with lightning, fire, and psionic energy against the towering steel adversary, his efforts proved futile, each attack harmlessly bouncing off the robotic monstrosity.

Shiho, acknowledging her role, stepped forward to cast a series of crowd-control spells. When her abilities showed no effect on the paper constructs, her determination only deepened. 

"Damn it, it's useless. I'll watch your backs!" she announced, shifting her focus to augment the team's capabilities with a succession of skills, enhancing their combat effectiveness.

However, as Shiho's concentration peaked, a barrage of rockets launched from Kaneshiro's fortress targeted her directly, sending her flying backward into the midst of the origami onslaught.

"Shiho!" Ann's shout pierced the cacophony as she directed Carmen's flames towards the encroaching guards. 

As each guard ignited, the victory was short-lived; for every adversary reduced to ash, another swiftly took its place, a relentless wave of paper soldiers.

Makoto, observing the flow of battle with a strategist's eye, issued commands to shift the tide after noticing Ren was focused on dodging a barrage of missiles headed his way.

"Panther! Mona! Work together to create one of the fire hurricanes. They might be infinite but if we create a wall of fire we can slow them down!" She shouted, her voice firm and clear cutting through the ringing of the alarms.

Once Ren got a window of opportunity, he called forth Eligor. Jumping atop the spectral horse and weaving through the battlefield with the grace of a knight, his gaze scanned for any opportunity to turn the battle in their favor.

 Following Ren's lead, Makoto weaved through the countless guards atop Johanna, her eyes looking for any weakness in the robot while keeping an eye on the rest of the group in case they needed reinforcements.

Meanwhile, Ryuji, embodying the spirit of a charging bull, propelled himself towards the metallic behemoth. Captain Kidd, materializing with a crackle of electric energy, slammed into the fortress, leaving a small dent in the practically impenetrable fortress.

Kaneshiro's voice, booming and contemptuous, echoed through the vault.

"You brats don't understand the power of money. It's meant to be used and enjoyed." His taunt, however, was a prelude to a more sinister assault. 

The origami guards, previously a mere physical threat, began to glow ominously. Moments later, they detonated in a spectacular explosion, unleashing a maelstrom of elemental fury upon the Thieves.

Caught in the whirlwind of Kaneshiro's attack, the group had to brace themselves as they faced a wave of elements exploding throughout the room. 

In the aftermath of the chaos, Ann, though battered and bruised, rose to her feet with resilience. Locking eyes with Mona, the two of them nodded with determination as they called forth their personas.

Carmen and Zorro appeared side by side. Launching a wave of fire fueled by Zorro's sharp winds indiscriminately throughout the room. The flames, fueled by the scattered bills carpeting the floor, grew into a voracious inferno, threatening to engulf everything in its path. However, the more the fire devoured, the more out of control it grew.

As the roaring fire began to slowly envelop the corners of the room, Makoto's gaze noticed something. Every time the weapons in the robot were used, they would briefly expose some of the interior panels of the robot. Attacking that weakness would mean disabling the robot's guns and possibly even creating a weak spot on the robot they could exploit to destroy it.

Makoto's voice cut through the chaos, urgently sharing her insight on the robot's vulnerability, but her triumph was short-lived. A shiver of dread ran down her spine as the piggy bank robot suddenly propelled itself skyward, then crashed back to the ground with devastating force. 

The impact generated a massive shockwave, hurling Makoto from her Persona and directly into the midst of flaming guards, which were ready to pounce and unleash their fury upon her.

Ryuji, witnessing Makoto's danger from afar, let out a curse of frustration, realizing he was too distant to intervene directly. Without hesitation, he summoned Captain Kidd, steeling himself for the battle ahead as he dashed towards Makoto, determined to aid her.Launching waves of lightning towards the guards from a distance as he ran.

Meanwhile, the fire, once a controlled weapon against their enemies, had grown into a rampant inferno, engulfing the vault's floor and threatening to consume the entire space in its voracious flames.

Amid the escalating chaos that threatened to overwhelm the battlefield, Ren realized that the group had become disorganized and that if things continued this way, they would end up losing the battle.

It was then that he sensed an unmistakable pull from two distinct objects bestowed upon him. The wishing star from Jose and the enigmatic scalpel given by Igor. In a moment of crisis, his instincts guided his hand to the wishing star concealed within his jacket.

As Ren clasped the star, its luminescence intensified, casting a serene glow amidst the pandemonium. Holding it firmly, he felt an inexplicable bond with the cognitive world around him. With a deep, focused breath, Ren concentrated on his desire, his wish resonating with the power of the star.

Closing his eyes for a moment to focus on his wish, he felt the world around him tremble as the bills covering the ground began to crumble into grains of sand. Slowly, then, all at once, every single bill disappeared. Even the countless guards froze as they began to fall apart. The out-of-control flames also burned away as their fuel source disappeared.

As the wishing star radiated with a potent brilliance, signaling the transformation of Kaneshiro's cognition under Ren's will, the maw of the piggy bank robot opened. It unleashed a voracious suction force that consumed everything the star had created within seconds. Causing the star to glow dimmer until Ren felt his connection to the world disappear.

"Delicious, this is simply delicious!" echoed Kaneshiro's voice, filled with triumphant malice, as the piggy bank robot shuddered, brimming with a newfound surge of power. 

In a display of terrifying strength, the robot launched itself into the air, its form radiating an ominous glow as it readied to crash down once more, threatening to unleash devastation.

"Stop!" Shiho shouted as she grasped the crystal of lust in her hand. The order coursed through the air, freezing the robot just mid-air mere inches above the ground. Saving Ren, Makoto, and Ryuji, who were closest to the robot. However, with each moment, the glow of the crystal began to diminish.

Knowing the danger the robot posed, the group sprang into action. Summoning their personas, they scrambled to put as much distance between themselves and the robot as possible. Despite their efforts, a colossal explosion erupted behind them, the force propelling them into the vault's walls. The impact was so severe that Ryuji and Makoto were rendered unconscious, slumped against the cold ground.

Knowing what was about to happen, the group quickly acted, summoning their personas and trying to get as far away from the robot as possible. As they retreated, they felt a massive explosion behind them. The entire group crashed onto the walls of the vault, causing Ryuji and Makoto to fall to the ground unconscious. 

In the aftermath, the vault was enveloped in an eerie silence, the once blaring alarms now muted and the crimson glow of emergency lights flickering sporadically. The single, catastrophic attack had rocked the very foundations of the bank.

Struggling to his feet amidst the rubble, Ren grimaced against the pain that racked his body. His ears were ringing loudly as his gaze swept over his fallen friends before settling on the robot, now embedded in the vault floor, with the glow of power it had just moments ago gone.

Wincing from the pain, realization dawned on him as he pulled out the crystal of gluttony. To consume one attack to power up the next. Unfortunately for them, Kaneshiro had consumed the power from the star.

Glancing over his shoulder, Ren's gaze found Shiho, her figure marred by bruises yet alight with determination, as she joined forces with Ann and Mona. Together, the three of them were desperately healing the unconscious members of their party.

Thankfully, they had been far enough from the explosion that they had not suffered quite as much damage. The only reason Ren was still standing was because he had changed to a persona that resisted physical damage at the very last second.

The throbbing pain in his head crescendoed along with the ringing in his ears, syncing with the increasingly insistent call of the scalpel within him. Facing the battered ensemble behind him, Ren exhaled a weary sigh, the burden of command and concern etched into his features.

Looking up at the gigantic robot embedded into the ground, Ren's eyes narrowed as he saw a barrage of countless missiles heading their way.

Lifting up the crystal of gluttony with his left hand, a voracious gravitational pull erupted from the crystal, rerouting the deadly projectiles into its core. After consuming the attack, the crystal pulsed with energy and began glowing. However, it also became so heavy that it forced Ren to his knees.

On the ground, Ren looked as the piggy bank began to tremble as it tried to stand back up to finish the group. Everything had gone so smoothly during their infiltration that he had almost expected the heist to follow suit. 

Maybe he should have been more careful, maybe they should have spent more time in Mementos training, and maybe they should have seen this coming. Everything had gone downhill the moment Kaneshiro appeared.

None of that mattered right now as Ren took off the mask from his face and placed it on the cold floor. Holding the heavy crystal of gluttony in his left hand as he summoned the scalpel on his right.

As the scalpel materialized, a sense of innate understanding washed over Ren. He knew what needed to be done. With a solemn determination, he raised the scalpel above the mask, his voice breaking the tense silence with a single word.

"Theurgy." 

The moment the words left his mouth, he plunged the scalpel towards the mask.