Persona 5 Royal Haru confidant guide: Empress choices, romance, & gifts

The adventure in Persona 5 and Persona 5 Royal is all about living a double life - that of a master thief undertaking daring supernatural heists and, of course, the day-to-day drama and humdrum of being a teenager and a student. The biggest challenge in the latter is of course the relationships - and in Persona, how well you know your classmates and allies will even impact you in battle.

On this page, we're going to detail the confidant co-operation for Haru Okumura, who represents the Empress arcana - aka Limperatrice - III. We list every conversation you can have with Haru as part of ranking up her confident relationship, which in this game is officially called a co-operation. By using this guide you can always say the right thing at the right time and level up your relationship quickly. Haru enters the game quite late and she's a romanceable confidant, so time may well be of the essence if she's the target of your desires.

Don't forget that we have all the other characters covered, too: visit our Persona 5 Royal Confidant guide, which features all conversation choices, romance options gifts and skills. 

Haru Okumura Confidant Cooperation Guide - Empress (Limperatrice - III)

Below you'll find all ten ranks of your confidant relationship with The Empress, Haru Okumura. It features any choices that impact the relationship, plus makes clear when you're about to enter into a romance. 

For the record, the +1, +2 and +2 points you see refer to how much is added to the invisible stat that tracts your confidant cooperation. The more points, the faster you level up. There's also a point bonus for having a Persona of the correct Arcana in your stock when you hang out with Haru - so whenever you're with her, have an Empress arcana Persona to hand. Also, don't forget gifts, which can also boost your relationship. 

• Location & Days Haru is available: Haru is usually found on the rooftop of the school after school. She's not available on Sunday or when it rains.
• Haru Gifts: Haru likes gifts like the Heart Necklace, Chocolate Truffles and Glass Vase to name a few - and we list a few more in out brief Haru Gifts section below. Check out our full Persona 5 Royal Gift Guide for the full list of what she enjoys.

Rank 1:

• After 10/30, find and chat to her on the school rooftop. On Sundays, she hangs out at the school gates. (Go home, girl!) 
• Unlocks Cultivation, which allows you to grow vegetables on the roof.

Impactful Conversation Choices for this Rank:

• Post-Rank 1:
  • Option 1: "Sounds good." +3
  • Option 2: "That was our deal." +3
  • Option 3: "Thanks. I'm counting on you." +3

Rank 2:

Haru's confidant Rank 2 requires Rank 5 (Transcendent) Proficiency to begin. Impactful Conversation Choices for this Rank:

• Choice 1:
  • Option 1: "Are you opening a cafe?" +3
  • Option 2: "You like coffee?" +3
  • Option 3: "Are you starting a farm?" +2
• Choice 2: "He sounds suspicious." +3
• Choice 3:
  • Option 1: "This is a complex issue." +3
  • Option 2: "You might be wrong." +2
  • Option 3: "Maybe you should fire him." +2
• Phone Conversation (P5R): Any choice +3

Unlocks Baton Pass ability, letting you pass Haru's turn to other Baton Pass users in battle after a 1 More.

If our numbers aren't matching what you're seeing in-game, remember there's a +1 point bonus for having a Persona of the correct Arana - in Haru's case, Empress - on you when hanging out. Many +3 point answers will only be +2 if you don't have a Persona, so swap your Persona out before hanging out!

Rank 3:

Impactful conversation choices for this rank:

• Choice 1:
  • Option 3: It'll be okay, I promise." +3
  • Option 2: "They won't find out." +3
  • Option 1: "A phantom thief wouldn't worry." +2
• Choice 2: "I don't want to go with you." +2
• Choice 3:
  • Option 2: "Not yet." +3
  • Option 3: "Too many times to count." +3
  • Option 1: "I have." +2 
• Phone Conversation (P5R): "Smart Response." +3

Unlocks the Follow Up ability, giving Haru the chance to attack an enemy after Joker as a follow-up.

Rank 4:

Impactful conversation choices for this rank:

• Choice 1:
  • Option 3: "It must be amazing." +3
  • Option 1: "That's pricey." +2 
• Choice 2:
  • Option 1: "I can't let you do that." +3
  • Option 3: "Cheers." +3
  • Option 2: "Let me cover the bill." +2
• Choice 3: 
  • Option 1: "You mean... poop!?" +3
  • Option 2: "I can taste the elephant." +3
  • Option 3: "Excuse me while I vomit." +3
• Choice 4: "Let's ask him." +3
• Choice 5: "I'm not really sure." +3
• Phone Conversation (P5R):
  • Option 3: "Let's get coffee again sometime." +3
  • Option 1: "I don't mind." +2

Unlocks the Celeb Talk ability, giving Haru the chance to step in on a failed demon negotiation.

Rank 5:

Impactful conversation choices for this rank:

• Choice 1:
  • Option 2: "Somebody's telling the truth." +3
  • Option 3: "Trust no one." +2
• Choice 2:
  • Option 3: "There has to be another way." +3
• Choice 3:
  • Option 3: "I don't think so." +3
  • Option 1: "That doesn't matter now." +2
• Phone Conversation (P5R):
  • Option 3: "Pinch yourself." +3
  • Option 1: "Are you okay?" +2

Unlocks Selective Breeding, which improves vegetable crop outcome.

Rank 6:

Impactful conversation choices for this rank:

• Choice 1:
  • Option 1: "That's fascinating." +3
  • Option 3: "Can you make some for me?" +3
  • Option 2: "You're so studious." +2
• Choice 2: "I had no idea." +3
• Choice 3:
  • Option 2: "That would be bad." +3
  • Option 3: "Black like coffee?" +3
• Choice 5: "Be strong, Haru." +3
• Phone Conversation (P5R): "You can talk to me anytime." +3

Unlocks the Harisen Recovery ability, which gives Haru the chance to step in and heal status ailments on party members when in the party.

Rank 7:

• Impactful conversation choices for this rank:
  • Choice 2:
    • Option 3: "What do you want to do?" +3
    • Option 1: "That sounds really tough..." +2
  • Choice 3: All choices are +3
    • Option 1: "What does Takakura-san think?" +3
    • Option 2: "There has to be a way." +3
    • Option 3: "You should tell him that." +3
  • Choice 4: Both choices are +3
    • Option 1: "That's the spirit."
    • Option 2: "You can do it, Haru."
  • Phone Conversation (P5R):
    • Option 2: "I'll always have your back." +3
    • Option 3: "So what's this "magic item"?" +2
• Unlocks the Soil Improvement ability, which reduces the time a crop takes to grow.

Rank 8:

Impactful conversation choices for this rank:

• Choice 1: "The soil?" +3
• Choice 2:
  • Option 1: "It'll help him understand you." +3
  • Option 2: "He's going to love it." +3
• Choice 3:
  • Option 1: "I'll be cheering for you." +3
  • Option 2: "You're amazing, Haru." +3
  • Option 3: "Are you sure you can do that?" +2
• Phone Conversation (P5R):
  • Option 3: "I want some too." +3
  • Option 2: "It's in your nature to nurture." +2

Unlocks the Endure ability, giving Haru a chance to withstand a blow in combat that would usually kill.

Rank 9 [Romance Point]:

This is the point when a romance with Haru Okumura becomes available. Impactful conversation choices for this rank:

• Choice 2:
  • Option 1: "I'm sure you'll do great." +3
  • Option 3: "Give it all you've got, Haru." +3
  • Option 2: "It'll be fine." +2
• Choice 3:
  • Option 1: "You're very welcome." +3
  • Option 2: "You did amazing." +3
• Choice 4: 
  • Friendship - Option 1: "He saw us as good friends."
  • Romance - Option 2: "I like you too, Haru."
• Phone Conversation (P5R if not romanced): "You sound so happy." +3
• Phone Conversation (P5R if romanced): 
  • Option 2: "I wanted to hear your voice." +3
  • Option 3: "I miss you." +3

Unlocks the Protect ability, giving Haru the ability to shield Joker from an attack that would be fatal.

Rank 10:

• Any choices you make will be irrelevant, since this is the max rank.
• Unlocks Mother Harlot for fusion.
• Unlocks Second Awakening, evolving Haru's Persona to its Astarte.

Best Gifts for Haru in Persona 5 Royal

In both vanilla Persona 5 and Persona 5 Royal, one of the quickest ways you can give your relationship with Haru a boost - making it quicker to level her up as a confidant or romance her - is to hand over gifts. There's a wide range of potential presents you can give in the game, as detailed in full in our Persona 5 Royal gift guide. In the interests of keeping this page defintiive, however, here's some gifts you should consider giving to Haru for the larger boost:

• Chocolate Truffles: gives a +3 boost in P5, and a +2 Boost in P5R. Find them in the Underground Mall.
• Book Cover: +3 in P5, +2 in P5R. Buy from the Underground Mall
• Glass Vase: +3 to the relationship in both games, and triggers a unique reaction. Buy from the Undeground Mall.
• Flower Basket: +3 in both versions, plus a unique reaction. Just 2400 Yen from Shinjuku at Night.
• Heart Ring / Necklace: This is actually two items, and both provide a +3 boost to the Haru confidant link, but only if you're in a romance. They are very expensive, though!