All Might is one of the most powerful and iconic heroes in the world of My Hero Academia. Despite his immense strength and popularity, All Might harbors a devastating secret that very few people know about. This article will explore All Might’s secret power, how he obtained it, and the consequences it has had on his hero career.
All Might’s True Quirk: One For All
All Might was not actually born with the power that made him the greatest hero. His true Quirk is called One For All, and it is a stockpiling Quirk that passes power from one user to the next. All Might received this Quirk from his mentor Nana Shimura, the seventh holder of One For All.
One For All accumulates and combines the physical power of every previous user, becoming stronger with each new successor. This ever-growing stockpile of power is what gave All Might his immense superhuman abilities. At his peak strength, All Might was unmatched by any other hero in terms of raw power and speed.
How All Might Received One For All
As mentioned above, All Might inherited One For All from Nana Shimura, who was the 7th holder of this Quirk. Shimura was All Might’s mentor when he attended U.A. High School and she recognized his potential to be a worthy successor.
After graduating U.A. High School, All Might continued training under Shimura. During a villain attack, Shimura used the last of her power to defeat the villains, dying in the process. With her remaining strength, she passed One For All on to All Might, trusting that he would use it to continue fighting for justice.
All Might took Shimura’s power and vowed to honor her by becoming the greatest hero in the world. Her passing of One For All is largely responsible for All Might’s rise to the top.
The Secret Behind All Might’s Power
For many years, the source of All Might’s strength remained a closely guarded secret. As far as the public knew, his Quirk simply gave him immense physical abilities. In reality, One For All was the origin of his power.
All Might knew it was crucial to keep this a secret to maintain public faith in his image as the unwavering Symbol of Peace. If villains knew that his power came from a transferable Quirk, they may target One For All to destroy the pillar of hero society.
Only a few of All Might’s most trusted allies, such as Sir Nighteye, Gran Torino, and eventually Principal Nezu of U.A. High School, knew about One For All. For decades, All Might was able to keep his Quirk an absolute secret from the world.
Passing One For All to Deku
After reigning as the No. 1 hero for a long time, All Might suffered a devastating injury in a battle against the villain All For One. This injury severely weakened All Might and reduced the amount of time he could use One For All each day.
Realizing he could not remain the Symbol of Peace for much longer, All Might searched for a worthy successor to inherit One For All. He eventually found the candidate he was looking for in Izuku “Deku” Midoriya, a Quirkless student with a strong sense of heroism.
After rigorous training, All Might officially passed his powers on to Deku by having him ingest some of All Might’s DNA. This activated One For All in Deku, allowing him to stockpile power. All Might’s time as the wielder of One For All had come to an end.
Consequences of Passing On One For All
Giving One For All to Deku came with several significant consequences for All Might’s hero work and public image. The main issue was that All Might could no longer maintain his muscle form for as long or as often.
Without his full powers, All Might struggled to keep up his confident and mighty persona. He was forced into early retirement, unable to perform front-line hero work. This was a massive blow to public morale.
Furthermore, All Might had to be careful to avoid publicly using up what little One For All power he still retained. It became much easier for observers to notice the limits of his shrinking abilities.
Nonetheless, All Might continued mentoring Deku to help him control One For All. He also remained an inspiration through teaching at U.A. High School. His time as the Symbol of Peace may have passed, but his heroic spirit lives on.
Why All Might’s Secret is so Important
If All Might’s secrets got out, it could change everything we know about Quirks. One For All reveals that Quirks can be passed down and stockpiled, fundamentally changing what it means to have a superpower.
The existence of One For All could create chaos as people realize Quirks are not necessarily limited to one person. This force could be abused if it fell into the wrong hands.
All Might likely kept One For All a secret to avoid upending society’s understanding of Quirks. Public knowledge of this power’s true nature would undermine everything the Symbol of Peace stood for.
It would also make One For All a target, especially for All For One. Keeping the true source of his might secret was necessary to protect the Quirk and its growing legacy.
Conclusion
In summary, All Might’s immense heroic abilities actually came from a powerful stockpiling Quirk called One For All, not a natural superpower. He inherited this torch from his mentor Nana Shimura and kept it a closely guarded secret for years.
However, All Might’s injuries forced him to pass One For All to Izuku Midoriya in order to train a worthy successor. This resulted in the loss of All Might’s abilities and his eventual retirement.
One For All remains a mysterious and coveted power hidden in plane sight. Its secretive nature is necessary to prevent widespread instability and protect the Quirk from villains. Only a select heroic few have been trusted with unlocking the true origins of All Might’s strength.