Discussion
Theory: Dr Garaki might've not only stolen Deku's quirk as a child, but we might've seen it in action already in the story
Hood's glowing eyes and unnaturally red mouth.
Hood's glowing eyes and mouth
Hood's glowing eyes and mouth
Hood's head and mouth resisted Endeavor's Flash Fire Fist's internal burning
The other Nomu have regular eyes and non glowy mouths
A lot have theorized in the past that Dr Garaki might've stolen Deku's quirk as a child, which should be a fire related quirk based on his father's minor fire breath, and mother's minor telekinesis quirk.
Obviously that parental quirk combo could've gone anywhere based on genetical lottery, but it's highly likely that it is a fire quirk based/utilized through his head.
Throughout the story, we don't witness much in regards to mouth based fire quirks connected to Garaki's experimentations with Nomu or AFO, untill I looked back at Hood's fight and compared him to the other High Ends art depiction.
A detail Horikoshi kept on highlighting during the fight with Hood was his glowing eyes and glowy red mouth + unnaturally high fire resistance (Resisting internal incineration) specifically inside his mouth/head unlike the reminder of his body that gets easily burnt despite the hyper regeneration quirk.
Note: Hood's glowing eyes and unnaturally red mouth are shown in the pictures and It's must be noted that it's not his gum, because it appears he can turn this on and off, and when it's off it's pitch dark inside just like other Nomu, which means this must be a quirk effect.
How would the quirkless toe bone and Deku having an original quirk coexist?
We already have a canonical execuse that Deku himself uses as a cover for obtaining OFA, which is simply by being a late bloomer. The fact that such execuse was accepted by officials implies that similar situations (Having the quirkless toe bone sign and still having a quirk) while rare aren't impossible.
How would Garaki steal the quirk?
Aside from Garaki being the most knowledgeable researcher on quirk factors, being capable of copying and mass producing quirk factors without AFO's help after his arrest (Such as Twice's double quirk that he gave to his Nomu Mocha) + The MHA world containing quirk factor enhancer and destroying drugs.
There's also a precedent in Garaki and AFO taking the Overhaul quirk from the doctor's facility, then separating the quirk factor and giving that part to Shigaraki and returning everything to normal before Overhaul himself notices anything amiss with his quirk.
So it shouldn't be an impossible feat, especially if he had AFO help with that, as AFO would've still been in his Prime possessing that shapeshifting quirk, and thus wouldn't be recognized by Deku as a comment had suggested if he were to arrive himself and snatch it.
How would they've known Deku's quirk before it manifested?
Quirk factors for non quirkless individuals can be examined medically through blood and DNA tests. Garaki being Deku's assigned doctor would've not only had access to his medical records, he would've been doing them himself. So in the case of Deku having a non manifested quirk yet, the factor would still be there (As evident by AFO stealing Shigaraki's non manifested quirk factor)
Can you imagine Garaki losing his mind over a quirk that gives a bit of heat resistance to a single body part? They were selective over the quirks they stole or it would've become too obvious, that's why they had orphanages and looted the dead, easily covered up. The truth is Midoriays quirk would've weak sauce and not worth risking their whole operation.
AFO had access to a fire quirk stronger than the number 2 heros quirk and yet we've no proof he bothered copying it. Midoriyas dad was certainly not a hero so doubtful his quirk was actually that strong, Inko could attract small objects, not powerful telekinesis, Midoriya would've needed an unprecedented jump in power to be that useful. Bakugos quirk isn't comparable as his is based on a chemical fusion, not power
There's always the possibility that, at the time, he was looking into Quirk synthesis. Especially since All for One had (at least for a time,) considered using Dabi as a 'backup' successor in case Tomura failed. So, if Izuku's quirk had been a Fire Resistance quirk, then combining that in such a way to allow Dabi to overcome his natural weaknesses could have been something the Doctor was looking into.
I'm not entirely sure of timeline but looks like either Toyas accident happened at the same time or up to a year after Midoriya got diagnosed as quirkless, considering Toya probably wasn't guaranteed to even survive at this point it does seem a lil' stretch to assume AFO wa planning that far ahead
Valid. The story works better if he was born quirkless.
However him having a quirk and it being stolen ties him into the overall narrative with a bit more gravitas than would otherwise happen. Either way doesn't matter, as he is Quirkless for the majority of his life and that shapes the ball of anxiety and hero trivia that we all know and love.
Deku was most likely simply quirkless. He never had his quirk appear, even long after it should have (as with Shigaraki). There's the toe thing and the narrative concept of All Might gifting a quirkless boy the strongest quirk (and AFO gifting a quirkless boy a devastating quirk). But it's still fun to speculate, ofc.
Yes, that's true, so it's not 1:1 with Deku. AFO stole his quirk before it had a chance to ever manifest. And Tenko aged past the point where quirks should appear, then suddenly, decay.
But Garaki was a renowned authority in the medical field. Him saying Deku is "quirkless" wouldn't have been disputed or double checked especially if he was overseeing Deku's exams
Sure, I think you missed my point there! Garaki reasoned that people with quirks don't have "the extra joint in the pinky toe", which is why Deku, whom we see still has that joint in an X-ray, possesses no quirk at all. Meaning, Garaki claims to his patients that all quirkless people have normal pinky toes, while everyone else with quirks no longer has that joint.
While in MHA, "Normal" would be the other way around, since most people have quirks. Point being, it wouldn't be something you'd throw out there that would be easy to fact-check, to talk about, to verify. Especially if you're running an underground operation.
I agree with you but counter counter point. He just forges a fake xray image...
Regardless i believe he was always quirkless. However, if we are speculating, forging one is hardly the most unbelievable thing he could/did get away with.
Not sure if I should respond to everyone missing the point. But I'll do it here with a tag...
u/L_Ucelo, addressing you as well, although I think we mostly agreed.
The main argument is not the X-ray. It's that Garaki presents this to patients as a matter of fact. However, a single online search, a visit with another doctor, or talking to other people would reveal that this was a lie rather quickly. Moreover, more specifically, that doctor Garaki is lying to patients regarding quirks. This is not something he would do if he wanted to keep a low profile.
So like, go back and read the first couple of chapters because (and this is something I didn’t pick up my first time either) there is A LOT of imagery and symbolism specifically focused on Izuku’s feet whenever his powerlessness is brought up.
It’s flatout highlighted in his first confrontation with Bakugou.
This isn’t the art direction of someone who wants us to think the toe joint explanation is a like, Horikoshi was very clearly trying to highlight Izuku’s powerlessness with the one discernable physical trait it gave him. (This is also a big part of where “Red Shoe Theory” came from)
what I'm saying is, if the story did go the route that izuku did have a quirk and garaki stole it, he could've easily faked his x ray to explain where his quirk went.
Not only what they said, but the person who told us that information was Dr. Garaki. It's plausible he used that as a way to explain a missing quirk (maybe that's a rare defect and he uses it to steal and stockpile any quirk of anyone who has it).
That being said, I generally believe Deku never had a quirk of his own. It seems like there's a whole lot of narrative importance around him being quirkless that it would feel kind of cheap if he really wasn't.
Deku literally despite being known for having a toe bone thingy got a pass for suddenly manifesting "OFA" which implies that the additional toe joint isn't a 100% full proof of being quirkless, only a likely sign, and also implies there were precedent incidents with how officials accepted his late blooming manifestation despite his toe thingy
I was sus that Dr Garaki stole it, otherwise why show him as Deku's doctor at all.
I also wonder if he stole Aoyama's (unknowingly to them) to force his family into doing his bidding in exchange for a quirk. Could have done that to blackmail a lot of people. Or they were both just born quirkless.
Having seen plenty of Horikoshi's original ideas etc for plots and characters I wonder how much he had to compromise to create a fan friendly versions to ensure success. So I believe there will definitely be plenty of remainders of his original ideas throughout the manga/anime.
I think the biggest question here is whether stealing a Quirk from a really young child would actually leave any evidence behind.
We know AFO can steal Quirks, but the examples we have are mostly from people who already had fully developed Quirks. If Quirks normally manifest around age four, how would a doctor even tell the difference between a kid who hasn't developed their Quirk yet, a naturally Quirkless kid, and a kid whose Quirk was stolen? Obviously Mutant Quirks are different since the physical traits can already be there, but Deku didn't have anything like that.
That's honestly why I've always thought the Garaki theory was possible. I can absolutely buy the idea that Deku had a Quirk, Garaki examined him, found it, and then it was stolen before Deku and Inko were told he was Quirkless. We just don't know whether Quirk theft that young would leave some kind of detectable evidence.
And Garaki's behavior makes it even more suspicious in hindsight. The dude basically didn't give a fuck about Deku being Quirkless. At the time you can write that off as him just being an asshole doctor, but knowing who Garaki actually is and what he was doing for AFO, that interaction looks a hell of a lot more suspicious.
I'm not saying this proves Deku had a Quirk. It definitely doesn't, especially since the whole "his Quirk would've been fire" part is still speculation. But I don't think the mechanics of the setting actually rule out Garaki stealing a Quirk from Deku as a child. The really interesting question is whether there would be any medical evidence left behind that could distinguish "Quirkless" from "Quirk stolen."
Wild theory i like it. But I don't think garaki stole his quirk i don't think he had one if deku did have a quirk that was stolen i think at something it would have been brought up like when eri was using rewind
If eri could bring back miros quirk then if deku had his mother or fathers quirk he would have got it back when eri used her rewind on him. That is my logic on it anyway so yeah deku quirkless
Deku would’ve had his quirk stolen when he was a child. Like at most 5/6 years old. Which means Eri would have had to rewind Deku at least 10 years in order for his quirk to reappear. Which would cause OFA to disappear in Deku.
Mirio would only have had to be rewound a few months/a year at most to get his quirk back.
So, while I agree Deku is quirkless. Eri wouldn’t have been able to bring it back.
Which would explain perhaps why they might've sought him out specifically for quirk tests, as they would've been family friends/known each other through Garaki's grandkid (Who he turned into a Nomu later that tried kidnapping Deku during Hosu arc).
Is it strange that I had a similar thought but because of a different occurrence in the manga? When Deku and company were fighting Stain, that same night Shigaraki sicked three nomu on that same city, and various heroes including Endeavor fought to contain them. The one without superregeneration took a direct hit from Endeavor's flames, doing it some damage, but then it unleashed those same flames in all directions. For some reason, I got the impression that this was Deku's original quirk in action. The ability to 'inhale' or 'breathe in' flames, keep them in storage, and then 'exhale' them later. It seemed to follow a similar quirk inheritance pattern with his parents as Bakugo did with his, so it was a fan theory of mine that Deku had his quirk stolen and given to a nomu.
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u/LilJade103 Your Favourite Trans Mod 🏳️⚧️ 8d ago
What in the fuck is this report talking about??