My Hero Academia will end with Deku having a Quirk (but it may not be One For All)

My Hero Academia chapter 418 was released on April 1, 2024, and the chapter showcased All for One's return in the form of a vestige that kept haunting Tomura Shigaraki from turning over a new page. With Tomura now in the direct grip of the villain, will Deku be able to save him?

The chapter also foreshadowed that All for One could be the person who implanted Decay into Tenko (Tomura Shigaraki), as the latter's father kept updating about the latter's quirk manifestation situation to a mysterious person. So, what this could infer is that Tomura is beyond saving as long as he has the quirk Decay inside him.

Fans speculate that Deku could be the person who could rip this quirk off him to save Tenko from his sad future as a villain. But this won't just be removed, as Deku could steal the decay quirk, and the series could end with him having a quirk.

Disclaimer: This article contains potential spoilers from the My Hero Academia manga series and has the author's opinion.

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My Hero Academia: Discovering the reason why Deku could only save Tomura if he inherits the Decay quirk

Tenko as seen in the anime (Image via Bones)

My Hero Academia chapter 418 started with the moment of truth, where Tenko was about to awaken his quirk while holding his dog as Deku approached to help him. Unfortunately, the latter was too late, and Tenko ended up killing his dog by awakening his quirk Decay.

Later, Tenko's sister exited the house to check on him and there seemed to be no hope for the survival of the villain. But Deku jumped in between them and sacrificed his body to save the villain's sister by getting his body decayed. Tomura kept asking why he would sacrifice himself for someone else, to which Deku replied that he saw him crying.

After this, a brief flashback was shown, where Tomura's face glows up after one of his friends says that he should be All Might in the game they played. Unfortunately, he returned to reality and kept uttering that he was born to become a villain. But he could be seen to turn over a new page until a vague flashback about Kotoro Shimura, Tenko's father, came up.

All for One as seen in the anime (Image via Bones)

In this flashback, he was seen talking to some mysterious person who kept asking whether Tenko had manifested his quirk. As the flashback ended, a gigantic All for One popped out of nowhere and engulfed Shimura after belittling him.

The chapter could have indicated that the reason Tomura Shigaraki became a villain was not because of his hate but because of his quirk, Decay. Moreover, it was also indicated that the quirk Decay manifested inside him was also because of someone else's will, who could be All for One himself.

Tomura Shigaraki as seen in the anime (Image via Bones)

The story is pretty similar to how Aoyama got his quirk from All for One. He was revealed as the traitor of U. A. High School after Invisible Girl found his parents talking about All for One. He was given his quirk by All for One and was forced to reveal information about the heroes in exchange for it. Tomura could have also been implanted with Decay by All for One and no one knew about it.

So, the only possible way to save Tenko right now could be to take away his quirk Decay, and the only hero who is willing to take such a risk is Izuku Midoriya (Hero Name: Deku). He could end the series by taking Decay from Tomura and ending All for One's pursuit of the latter, thus killing him. So, it could be that My Hero Academia wouldn't end with Deku as a quirkless hero.

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