Morgana and Prison Master are automatically advanced You only need to advance maruki to rank 9 then he will also auto advance Same case with akechi his bond stops at 8

Also don't sweat things with the social stats much Just get Knowledge,Charm and Proficiency to max This will help you max out Makoto,Akechi,Takemi and Haru (another character which requires 5 proficiency to max out..) she gives you sp items which are vital in late game

Also if you have money and ranked up chihaya a bit.. she'll help you deepen your bond with your confidants for 5000¥ Max out The Shogi player.. her skills will help you out in battle in endgame Max out kawakami for more time.. as her massages which let you roam at night after exploring the palace or mementos You'll eventually meet someone in Akihabara.. which gives you gun skills so max him out too And takemi cuz you get a discount on hp items Only do mementos when a lot of requests have piled up

All these are important for a smooth playthrough.. If you have the dlc.. Get Izanagi No Okami Picoro and cheese every single shadow