Returning after the Obon break, My Hero Academia chapter 363 is arguably the most anticipated one in the final saga of the series. After a delay, the leakers have provided readers with detailed spoilers that seemingly confirm the death mentioned in the previous chapter.
As many predicted, My Hero Academia chapter 363 switches between several battles apart from the main ones at the U.A. grounds, the battles in Kamino and the Gunga Mountains. The chapter also marks the return of a critical villain, thereby setting up another layer of tragedy.
Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers for My Hero Academia chapter 363. Sportskeeda does not claim ownership of any media used here unless otherwise stated.
My Hero Academia chapter 363 raw scans feature drastic shifts in focus and a confirmation of a central character's death
According to the spoilers, My Hero Academia chapter 363 is titled The Ones Who Defend and The Ones Who Attack. There are four locations featured in the chapter. The article will cover the spoilers by the areas instead of moving chronologically.
U.A. grounds
According to the spoilers, My Hero Academia chapter 363 begins with a shocked and grieving Monoma remembering Bakugo's desire for a flawless victory. Best Jeanist confirms that Bakugo has no pulse. Mirio is frustrated that he could not hold the fort until Deku arrived. Shigaraki/AFO taunts Eraser Head that he remained in the background because he trusted his student, who is now dead.
The villain claims that Mirko is Deku's second present, but the Rabbit Hero is furious instead of being scared, stating that she should have killed Shigaraki back in Jaku. Shigaraki/AFO agrees that the heroes should have rushed in as per Deku's plan instead of waiting and giving the villains time to prepare.
Skeptic's lab
My Hero Academia chapter 363 reveals that Skeptic has hacked into and taken over All Might's command center from a laboratory in an undisclosed location. He is currently controlling a satellite and communicating with the villains via the speakers embedded into the Nomus' necks. He is also responsible for the heroes' communication network failing.
For an undisclosed purpose, Skeptic is seen tinkering with the civilian escape routes under U.A. through his computers. The chapter moves to the shelters where the Todorokis, especially Fuyumi, watch the children from the Remedial Courses. The children proclaim to their teacher that Shoto and Katsuki will take care of the villains. AFO's spies from chapter 342 are also present at the shelters.
Kamino ward
My Hero Academia chapter 363 shifts focus to Kamino, where Dabi has copied Shoto's technique of internalizing his fire and has thus survived the final attack. Shoto comments that his brother is a better improviser as he is self-taught. As Dabi attacks them, Burnin tells Shoto to run away, but the boy refuses.
Touya asks Skeptic for Endeavor's location and is informed that his father is fighting the villain in the Gunga Mountains, and the chapter shifts focus to this location. AFO claims that in reverse of the last war, the villains came prepared this time and have taken the heroes by surprise. The last page shows AFO's face, which seems partially healed.
Observations
Interestingly, while a lack of pulse can be taken as a confirmation of death, Horikoshi still leaves himself room for plausible deniability. In the superhero universe, several quirks can restart a stopped pulse. However, moving forward, readers must consider Bakugo dead for now. Mirko is unlikely to suffer the same fate as Katsuki, but the possibility of her getting disfigured cannot be discarded.
My Hero Academia chapter 363 shoots down the "Dabi Phoenix" theory. However, it is unclear how he can copy Shoto's technique when it focuses on unifying Fire and Ice, and Dabi does not possess the latter. He likely modifies his little brother's technique by naturally allowing his body to internalize his blue flames. Dabi is still focused on Endeavor, indicating that Shoto's earlier speeches fell on deaf ears.
Skeptic's appearance, while surprising, ties off several loose ends. His focus is on stopping civilians from escaping the shelters, which poses a double-edged threat when combined with the presence of AFO's spies. Not only would this mark a monumental failure for the heroes, but most of them have families within the shelters. Having them endangered would wreak havoc on the heroes' morale, psyche, and focus.
Final thoughts
AFO is correct in stating that the villains seem more prepared than the heroes so far. However, Horikoshi can upend that advantage at any moment by introducing a reasonable Deus Ex Machina. More importantly, both Shigaraki (at the U.A. grounds) and AFO (at the Gunga Mountains) seem to have healed themselves to a certain degree.
It is unclear what transpired to achieve this result, but this will surely set the heroes back even further. The state of healing for both them and Dabi cannot be adequately understood from the raw scans accompanying the spoilers. Readers must wait for the official translation of My Hero Academia chapter 363 for a clarification.