My Hero Academia: What is causing Shigaraki’s body mutations?

As the last few battles rage on in My Hero Academia, Tomura Shigaraki has transformed into a completely unrecognizable character.

The Pro Heroes already had plans to deal with him in the final arc. With the help of the Erasure Quirk, they would make sure that Shigaraki couldn't use any of his powers. However, it turns out that Shigaraki's body can adapt to anything in My Hero Academia, based on his recent transformations.

Shigaraki's body mutations have only made the villain grow stronger in My Hero Academia. Even without using his Quirks, he can still overpower the Pro Heroes in his base form. His new body was made to withstand this amount of punishment.

Note: This article reflects the writer's personal views and contains manga spoilers that haven't been adapted to the anime yet.

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There are multiple factors to Shigaraki's body mutations in My Hero Academia

Shigaraki was modified right before the Paranormal Liberation War

After defeating the Meta Liberation Army and forcing Gigantomachia to submit, Shigaraki finally proved himself to be a worthy successor to AFO. Kyudai Garaki then performed extensive surgery on him at the Jaku Hospital, which resulted in exponential growth in Shigaraki's powers.

His physical stats were greatly magnified since he was meant to hold multiple Quirks. Remember, normal bodies cannot withstand more than one Quirk, or they risk dying premature deaths like the former OFA users.

The surgery allowed Shigaraki to finally wield the AFO Quirk without any trouble. Shigaraki does have to deal with a few drawbacks, such as his body destroying itself if he uses too much power. This is because the surgical procedure was interrupted by Mirko during the Paranormal Liberation War.

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His body has to mutate just to maintain his power

During the final war of My Hero Academia, it was revealed that Shigaraki can regrow multiple fingers across his entire body in various shapes and sizes.

The Pro Heroes were shocked at the revelation, considering Neito Monoma was erasing the villain's powers. It turns out that Shigaraki's body was forced to adapt to multiple Quirks, so the villain is constantly evolving to find the perfect form, which is what makes his fast growth rate exceedingly dangerous.

Shigaraki's body mutations are a sight to behold in My Hero Academia. If he could use his Decay Quirk right now, the entire state of Japan would be at risk of destruction.

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Shigaraki always looks for the ideal form in combat

Shigaraki has undergone several transformations in the final war, his most recent being in My Hero Academia Chapter 366. The narration explicitly states why he evolved into this so-called "apex state":

• Shigaraki cannot use his Regeneration Quirk at the moment
• His body endured severe damage over the course of the final war
• Shigaraki is undergoing mental stress from the situation

In the end, his body had no choice but to change dramatically. Otherwise, he would've been completely destroyed by the Pro Heroes attacking him, such as the Big Three and Mirko. Shigaraki's latest form gives him a muscular build so he can defend himself more easily.

With that said, it's currently unknown if Shigaraki has more transformations in store for My Hero Academia. Best Jeanist believes that he has already reached his "final form," but that is always subject to change. Shigaraki is about to fight Izuku Midoriya, which means he will have to go 100%.

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