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Izuku Midoriya, aka Deku, has faced some of the strongest villains in the My Hero Academia series.
Considering he is the current One For All user, Deku bears a great burden in the series. He has to live up to a lot of expectations and overcome some very dangerous obstacles.
Whether it's Gentle Criminal or Tomura Shigaraki, most My Hero Academia villains pose a major challenge to Deku. However, the young protagonist certainly proved his worth against every single person on this list.
Note: This article reflects the opinions of the writer and contains major spoilers from the manga.
The strongest threats that Izuku Midoriya, aka Deku, ever faced in My Hero Academia
10) Gentle Criminal
Gentle Criminal may not seem threatening for a My Hero Academia villain. However, during the School Festival arc, he gave Deku a very challenging fight.
To put it into perspective, Deku even told Gentle Criminal that he was the hardest villain he has fought so far. Remember, this was right after the Shie Hassaikai arc with the terrifying Overhaul.
Elasticity allows Gentle to turn anything he touches into an elastic object. He often uses it to create trampolines for jumping around or barriers to deflect attacks. It's a very creative use of a Quirk by My Hero Academia standards.
9) Nomu
This is the one My Hero Academia villain that Deku needed to avoid back in the U.S.J. arc. He was simply too weak to go up against the heavily powered Nomu, who managed to critically injure Shota Aizawa.
In the end, it took an Oklahoma Smash from All Might to finish the Nomu off.
8) Muscular
Muscular made his debut in the Forest Training Camp arc, where the League of Villains attacked the U.A. students. He is widely known for his physical strength and overwhelming power. As his name suggests, Muscular's offensive capabilities are second to none.
Deku had to resort to a 1,000,000% Delaware Detroit Smash just to put down his opponent for good. Even 100% didn't seem like it was enough at the time.
7) Lady Nagant
Lady Nagant is among the strongest female characters in My Hero Academia. She was first introduced in the Tartarus Escapees arc.
Lady Nagant was a former hero-turned-villain. Deku needed to track her down, but she didn't make it easy.
Known for her incredible sniping abilities, Lady Nagant can shoot away at targets from very long distances. If she fought anybody else but Deku, she would've probably taken them out in a single shot.
Thanks to All For One, Lady Nagant can even use a few more Quirks, such as Air Walk, for excellent mobility.
6) Overhaul
Overhaul is the Yakuza boss from the Shie Hassaikai saga in My Hero Academia. He is a sadistic villain who can disassemble anything he touches, whether it's a person or an object. Because of this, directly approaching him can be very risky.
Deku has to rely on Eri using her Rewind Quirk just so he can avoid injuring himself using his full powers. He needed Full Cowl 100% just to stand a chance against Overhaul, let alone win.
5) Stain
Known as the Hero Killer, Stain had an entire arc named after him in My Hero Academia. He moves too quickly for the eye to see. His Bloodcurdle Quirk allows him to paralyze targets just by licking their blood.
Deku wasn't able to fight him by himself, which is why he teamed up with Shoto Todoroki and Tenya Ida. Even then, Stain proved to be a very difficult challenge, given his very tricky Quirk.
4) Wolfram
First seen in My Hero Academia: Two Heroes, Wolfram is undeniably powerful. He is a vicious thief who can visibly injure even someone like All Might.
With the use of Metal Manipulation, he can restructure metallic objects and use them offensively and defensively.
All For One also gave Wolfram a Muscle Augmentation Quirk for extra strength. It took a combined effort from Deku and All Might to bring him down via Double Detroit Smash.
3) Nine
Nine is the main villain of My Hero Academia: Rising. After donating his entire body to the League of Villains, he was given access to multiple Quirks. His most devastating Quirk is Weather Manipulation, which allows him to create catastrophic tornadoes and thunderstorms.
Nine was so dangerous that both Deku and Katsuki Bakugo had to use a Double Detroit Smash to get through his storm powers. They also needed to resort to Full Cowl 100%. Nine may have been in deteriorating health, but he was still a tough nut to crack.
2) Tomura Shigaraki
Along with his master All For One, Shigaraki is the main villain of My Hero Academia. From the very beginning of the series, he was lined up to be Deku's main rival. Shigaraki doesn't value life, whereas Deku tries everything to preserve it.
What makes Shigaraki dangerous is his Decay Quirk, which destroys anything he touches. After the Paranormal Liberation War, he grew considerably stronger. He now possesses multiple Quirks, including fast regeneration that makes him extremely difficult to kill.
1) All For One
Japan's most notorious criminal is the mastermind behind every bad event in the series, particularly if it involves his pupil Shigaraki. All For One's Quirk, predictably named after himself, allows him to steal other Quirks. He has stockpiled a significant amount throughout the past several decades.
All For One is the only villain to have ever injured All Might himself, thanks to a combination of ridiculously strong Quirks. Even after multiple defeats, All For One always finds a way to get back up. His life force and super regeneration make killing him nigh impossible.
The last arc of My Hero Academia focuses on the final showdown between All For One and Hero Society. It's going to be a very difficult challenge for Deku.
