Warning: Spoilers for My Hero Academia Season 7, Episode #17 (#155)My hero academia Has just revealed a secret that Shigaraki has managed to keep even from all for one, which constantly encroaches on his mind, and this secret is finally allowing the real final battle – that between Shigaraki and Deku – to begin. After all, the being Deku was fighting until now was all for one persona dominating Shigaraki’s body, not Shigaraki himself.
The development of Shigaraki in the lead-up to the final war was complicated, establishing that Shigaraki was as much a victim of All for One as he was a villain in his own right, with All for One trying to take Shigaraki down. s body for his own and craft a new merged persona. The new persona is largely dominated by All for One, with few elements of Shigaraki’s own personality. This has been evident throughout the battle against the Shigaraki/All for One villain so far, as he has been much more than All for One (except for his outburst against Lemillion, which was clearly Shigaraki).
Shigaraki went into hiding, but he’s back with a vengeance
Shigaraki cleverly avoided being swallowed by all for one
In episode 17, Shigaraki revealed that he had hidden his “heart” deep within himself, to avoid completely disappearing into the amalgamated being that All for One was set to create. The heart was represented by young Tenko Shimura, covered by hundreds of hands that block him from view. While some fusion between their two personas had already occurred, by hiding the heart, Shigaraki managed to keep himself intact through sheer willpower, and was finally able to overpower them all for one persona and take control of his body again.
This sets Deku up to fight the real Shigaraki, not all for one controlling Shigaraki’s body, as has been the case so far. Many fans eagerly awaited this turn of events, as Shigaraki is generally regarded as a much more compelling villain than All for One is. This isn’t necessarily a good thing for Deku, however; Shigaraki is much more adept at using his own quirk than All for One was, and after taking Shigaraki down to the surface, Deku no longer has the support of other heroes.Most importantly Aizawa and Monoma, who canceled Shigaraki’s ability to use quirks.
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While All for One has some vested interest in keeping Midoriya alive, if only long enough to steal One for All back, Shigaraki also has no such motive, as he doesn’t care about One for All either way. Shigaraki being back in control arguably makes this fight much more dangerous for Deku, but it also gives Deku the opportunity to “save” Shigaraki as he has always wanted to.
Shigaraki Versus Deku is the true final battle
Deku’s true nemesis has always been Shigaraki
Like the two legacies of All for One and One for All, Deku’s true opponent has always been Shigaraki, not All for One. It is much more fitting for Deku to be against Shigaraki, and this puts Deku’s morals to the test as he was willing to try to save the crying young boy he saw in Shigaraki. The full destructive power of Shigaraki is now unleashed, and if Deku is to prevent him from creating mass devastation, he may have no choice but to bring the battle to an end.
For Shigaraki’s part, his only goal is destruction, and he may choose to maximize the damage he inflicts on the world over battling Deku directly. With the immense power his Decay now has, being on Earth is exceptionally dangerous, as he could unleash another wave of Decay like he did in the Paranormal Liberation War, which killed thousands. Fortunately, UA seems to be hovering over an unpopulated area, so Shigaraki’s destruction won’t kill quite as many, though it could still be devastating to the landscape.
One thing is certain: the battle between Deku and the real Shigaraki will be interesting, because Deku must face not only a deadly villain, but also his own beliefs about saving villains – something that we have already seen bear fruit in the last episode. This battle will no doubt have a massive impact on the rest of the series, as the fate of the world ultimately rests more on this fight than anything else going on. My hero academiaThe true final battle is a test of will between Shigaraki and Deku, and this struggle has always been at the heart of the series.