The following content contains spoilers fromMy Hero Academia, Season 6, episode 25.On countless occasions, Deku has defied his nickname by proving how incredibly usefulhe truly is, by arguably being the most persistentthorn in the Villains' sidefor the past several months. And while thwarting evil and saving innocents has always been Deku’s plan, many authoritative figures have molded his path in life, leading him toward the nightmare that the young Hero faces today.
Certain Pro-Heroes have manipulated, mistreated, and taken advantage of Deku, all in the name of the greater good, although to the altruistic boy’s detriment. Izuku Midoriya is cherished by his fanbase and classmates; however, others, unfortunately, seem to see him as a tool of the trade.
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Izuku and All Might
All Might certainly changed Izuku’s whole world and made his life-long dream come true by bestowing him with the almightypower of One For All; however, he was not exactly transparent about the burden of carrying such a significant Quirk. First of all, Izuku had to learn the hard way that wielding so much power (and so suddenly) will literally tear his body apart whenever it isn’t used correctly. True, his beach-cleaning mission in Season 1 is aimed at bulking up his body to become a “proper vessel;” however, it’s safe to say that Deku didn’t understand the true extent of the expected damage (with potentially crippling results), until experiencing it firsthand.
All Might talk a big game about One For All’s potential (and rightfully so) but he conveniently leaves out the pitfalls when first posing the idea to the impressionable fanboy.
“Why are you giving me something so great?”
“I may hide a lot of things, but I don’t lie”
The #1 Hero is upfront about the fact that the Quirk transfer is highly dangerous, but without going into too much detail about the ongoing trauma Deku’s young (and rather frail) body will undergo. Never mind the weight of responsibility that comes with being All For One’s top target for the foreseeable future. Deku is not dumb and arguably connected the dots himself, but being awestruck by a beloved idol can play tricks on the mind.
All Might undoubtedly had no ill intention towards Izuku and was simply following his good-natured intuition (thankfully so, consideringhow Deku’s Quirkless factorplays such a vital role in his “inheritance”, which was unknown at the time.) And it’s not like he was desperate for candidates, Mirio was an honorable option, too. However, it would have been nice if the fourteen-year-old had all the information before agreeing to a lifelong contract.
Deku, the De-Facto Pro Hero
Deku has overpowered several potent villains, yet the Pro-Heroes are often the ones to get all the praise. On numerous occasions, Deku has snuck onto the battlefield, making a significant contribution to overpowering the enemy, and is sworn to secrecy regarding his heroic acts. Deku, of all people, is not in the Hero business for the associated celebrity status, so the lack of public acknowledgment is not a major issue; however, it is essentially the first trickle of grooming that has led to the borderline-abusive snowball effect of Season 6.
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The Pro-Heroes have arguably become so used to Deku’s ground-breaking interventions that they may have come to rely on the young Hero’s selflessness. Fans are well aware of how truly stubborn Izuku can be, however, the Pro-Heroes don’t put uptoomuch of a fight in deterring the boy from defying death, they just give him a stern talking to and send him on his way.
One For ALL (But Only Sometimes)
After the smoke has settled and the youngster has managed to get a hang of wielding his new Quirk(s), an unforeseen internal conflict crops up to damped Deku’s day. It’s bad enough that the Second and Third party-poopers initially give him the silent treatment and refuse to cooperate in the slightest, but the others seem hellbent on tainting Izuku’s innocence. Shigarki appears to have become an unstoppable force since his upgrade, and some Past Users have concluded that permanently eliminating their foe is the only option. All very well for the sentient “spirits” to preach about justice; however, Deku would be the one with blood on his hands, leaving an everlasting black mark on his heroic record. And fans all know how well how secrets like these haveworked out for Lady Nagant, Hawks, and Endeavor.
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Since the Paranormal Liberation War, Deku has formed a strange bond with Shigaraki and now sees his nemesis in a new light: as a vulnerable victim desperate for an out. One could argue that Deku is kept in a coma during the aftermath to givethe One For All Usersenough time to manipulate the innocent teenager to commit murder, but thankfully, things don’t pan out as planned. Izuku’s relentless stubbornness pays off once more, as everybody gets on board with Deku’s plan; which should have been the case from the get-go!
Deku and UA
It’s been roughly a month since the incident in Jaku, which ultimately led to Deku leaving the safety net of UA’s Emergency Evacuation Centre and taking up his self-sacrificing suicide mission. And while it is unclear how many days Deku spent (presumably) on the streets, by the looks of him, this wasn’t a quick excursion. And the way that Principle Nezu describes the story in Season 6, episode 22 gives the strong impression of ‘oh well, Deku’s gone now, nothing we can do about that so let’s move on.’ Having All For One’s prime target out of the picture certainly makes life a bit easier for Nezu, who has a lot on his plate already, so why waste energy and resources? He isthe most logical, intelligent guy around, after all.
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It takes a bunch of kids making a scene for Principal Nezu to begin taking action in protecting one of his own students and extend a hand by reassuring the overwhelmed teen that he is still welcome at UA. Deku would incontrovertibly still be on his solo mission (if he weren’t dead or captured by now)if Class A hadn’t intervenedand essentially forced both Nezu and Endeavor’s hands into revealing their friend’s location. Even if he knew Izuku’s mind was made up, the Principal’sfirstresponse should have been to ensure Deku knew he still had a home at UA, and that the defensive systems had been extensively upgraded, with even more features on the way.
The Pro-Heroes' Tool
While it is pretty cool to seethe Dream Team in action,there is evidently still a strong divide between the top Pro-Heroes and Deku, which has less to do with age and is more concerned with value. And while Endeavor, Hawks, and Best Jeanist clearly value the young Hero, it’s not necessarily for the most honorable reasons. They have no cooking clue about how to track down the League of Villians and are completely overwhelmed by the descent of Hero Society which is overrun with escaped Villains and rogue vigilantes. Most importantly, the Pros are well aware that Deku holds the treasure that All For One so desperately seeks, and openly admit to using him as bait to lure the Big Bad out of the woodwork (in Season 6, episodes 20 and 24). If Deku dies? Well, it may be for the greater good. Sure, they feel guilty about this situation, but not enough to make a change.
If they are smart, keeping Shikaraki’s updated ETA (of just three days) a secret from Deku should be a priority, considering he is such a flight risk. However, if winning is the main goal, the Pro-Heroes should swiftly send Deku back out into the darkness, in the hopes of finding All For One’s lair beforeShigaraki’s formidable upgrade is complete.And while this seems like quite a brutal response, is it really that far-fetched, considering past actions?
