My Hero Academia’s Cliffhanger Teases One For All’s Evolution

My Hero Academia’s latest cliffhanger has come with a major visual tease by series creator Kohei Horikoshi: Izuku Midoriya’s One For All power going through another (final?) stage of evolution. Manga/anime fans have expected no less, Deku’s progression with OFA has been one of the series’ main focuses. Now that My Hero Academia has reached its Final War arc, the time for stalling and fakeouts is officially done: Izuku has stepped onto the battlefield to face his rival Tomura Shigaraki and the power of All For One – bringing the totality of One For All along with him! 

WARNING: SPOILERS FOLLOW! 

In My Hero Academia manga chapter 367, Deku finally (finally!) escapes the trap Himiko Toga pulled him into, when the heroes initially launched their divide-and-conquer strategy against the villains. Even though Izuku gets a helping hand (and wing) from the “Bros” of the late American hero Star and Stripes – not to mention the collective powers of OFA – he still gets to the site of the “cage” at U.A. High School only after Shigaraki has laid waste to a bunch of Deku’s friends including Katsuki Bakugo, Rabbit Hero Mirko, Best Jeanist, and the Big 3 (Mirio Togata, Nejire Hado, and Tamaki Amajiki). The site of so many of his friends and/or top shining examples of heroism all battered and bloodied (and seemingly dead) rocks Izuku to the core – and in true Shonen fashion, the emotional trauma makes his power spike like never before! 

However, Deku gets too heated by the carnage Shigaraki has caused and nearly has his power spiral out of control in a new One For All Rage Mode that was even scarier than the “Dark Deku” persona he had before the Final War. However, thanks to Mirio’s connection to Izuku as a friend and role model, the phase-powered hero is able to get through to Deku both literally and figuratively. Lemillion assures Deku that the heroes have taken no permanent losses – including Edgeshot’s Deus Ex Machina save of Bakugo. It’s when Izuku finally regains his composure that he harnesses the full-fledged power of One For All, and we get a first visual tease of what the power will be, fully realized. 

In many ways this is the true Shonen payoff of My Hero Academia: the power build-up over the course of the series that will culminate in this climatic battle. The visuals will be everything and judging by the final splash page of manga 367, it’ll be worth the wait. 

My Hero Academia is releasing new manga chapters free online.