But now we’ve got anime, so the discussion just got a lot more interesting – and a lot more diverse. Today we’re taking a look at Deku and seeing which anime characters could knock the green straight out of his hair. Of course, I won’t go with the obvious picks like Saitama or Goku, so this is about to get heated. Let’s go!
12. Ken Kaneki
Anime: Tokyo Ghoul This seems like a good place to say that we’re talking about anime Deku, so no mastery of his extra quirks. When it comes to his fight with Kaneki, I think it’s Deku’s kind heart that would ultimately lead to his defeat. Kaneki can take a severe beating, like getting stabbed multiple times through the chest beating, and regenerate it all in a matter of seconds. Deku on the other hand is a glass cannon who can’t even use his full power without severely damaging his body. But the reason I mentioned Deku’s kind heart is the fact that he would have to go into the fight with a pure willingness to kill in order to even stand a chance against our ghoul boy. And you know, since Deku has only ever knocked people out while Kaneki has been tortured multiple times and literally ate people, I think that there’s no way in hell these two fighters would approach the battle in the same way – leading to Deku’s defeat.
11. Tanya Degurechaff
Anime: Saga of Tanya the Evil This is another case where Deku’s unwillingness to kill would spell his ultimate demise. That’s because Tanya is crazy and will 100% put a gun in your mouth and pull the trigger. But even if we take the PG nerf out of the equation, Deku stands no chance. Firstly, Tanya is basically a war veteran and knows more about battle than Deku could ever experience, at least until the MHA war arc. Secondly, Tanya has the high-ground and can just shoot Deku from above. Sure, Deku also has a ranged attack. But it’s pretty weak, and Tanya has a defensive barrier. And even if Tanya stayed close to the ground for whatever reason, her maneuverability is easily comparable to Bakugou – and would leave Deku a sitting duck.
10. Aladdin
Anime: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic Just in case you thought I would only put Deku against ruthless killers, let’s have a go with Aladdin. Even without his full power, Aladdin would be a virtually unsurpassable enemy for Deku. He wields a similar power to Todoroki during the tournament arc, while also having a lot of extra tricks up his sleeve. The abilities that would give Deku the most trouble are Aladdin’s shield and his sand soldiers. The shield is sturdy enough to tank any attack that isn’t at full power, and the soldiers could have Deku in hand-to-hand combat. Plus, even though he’s a mage, Aladdin himself knows some basic martial arts. So Deku couldn’t even dominate him if he managed to close the distance. But when we start talking about full powered Aladdin, even a 100% All for One Deku wouldn’t stand a chance, as Aladdin could easily destroy entire towns with his power.
9. Mo-Ri Jin
Anime: The God of High School Okay, for this one let’s imagine that Deku could use 100% All for One without breaking his body. In terms of strength and speed, I think that the two are pretty evenly matched. We are of course talking about Mo-Ri’s final form. We have seen both of them create giant craters with their punches, as well as jump high into the air at immense speeds. However, I still think that Deku would receive an L simply because of the discrepancy in hand-to-hand combat. Although Deku is pretty good and knows the ropes in terms of dodging, counterattacks, and how to use your enemy’s strength against them, Mo-Ri is just on a whole different level – as he’s an actual martial artist. Although I would love to see this fight animated any day of the week, I think that Deku doesn’t even stand a chance.
8. Shalltear Bloodfallen
Anime: Overlord Although Salltear doesn’t have many feats when it comes to raw strength, and she is limited by her mana pool, I would still say that it’s an easy victory. There are three major reasons for this. First, her ability to teleport means that no serious hits are ever going to land. Second, her barrier makes it so that even if she can’t teleport, she can absorb the attack. And third, even if the first two methods fail and Deku does manage to get a good hit in, Shalltear has some S-class recovery magic. Deku on the other hand is pretty fragile – and could only take a few of Shalltear’s fire spells before burning to a crisp.
7. Garou
Anime: One Punch Man This fight would be hype as hell, not going to lie. But I still do think that Garou would come out on top in the end. I’m making that assumption based on Garou’s fight with Tank Top Master, an S-class hero whose single punch completely destroyed the pavement by his feet. Although Deku is more powerful than that, I think it sets up the precedent that Garou knows how to deal with heavy hitters. Especially when you take into account that Garou only gets stronger as a fight progresses, and that Deku historically takes his time while in a battle. Garou also just surpasses Deku when it comes to speed, as he was able to blitz an entire group of heroes without them even having the time to react.
6. Ban
Anime: The Seven Deadly Sins Deku is by all means a glass cannon. And Ban counters this fighting style in every way imaginable. Not only is he immortal, but he can also drain your power as the fight progresses. Deku being who he is, would not use lethal measure right away (if at all), giving Ban the opportunity to drain him dry within a minute. Not to mention that Ban is also extremely strong on his own, as his arm-wrestling match with Meliodas literally destroyed an entire castle. Even in terms of speed, Ban outclasses Deku. He’s fast enough to literally use his opponent’s attack in order to shave his beard. No matter how you look at it, Deku is not coming out on top.
5. Ghislaine Dedoldia
Anime: Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation This fight just gave me hella Stain vibes, which is why I also wanted to include it. Just like Stain, Ghislaine is a master with the sword as well as any form of hand-to-hand combat. And even though she doesn’t have a Quirk like Stain, she surpasses him by a very large margin. That is because Ghislaine is the Sonic of swordsmanship and can stop an attack from a mile away, while simultaneously killing all of her enemies. We also run into that old argument of PG nerfs as Ghislaine would immediately go for the kill – while Deku would probably just try to subdue her. In all honesty, this would probably be a very boring fight. I have zero doubts that Ghislaine would immediately just cut Deku’s throat.
4. Aoi Toudou
Anime: Jujutsu Kaisen Toudou is just built different. And that’s because Toudou isn’t just a walking bicep like it would initially appear, but also a lowkey genius when it comes to combat. He has perfected his ability to such an extent that even an enemy far more powerful cannot keep up with him. And being that said ability gives Todou not only a lot of mobility, but also the element of surprise on a consistent basis, I think Deku is kind of screwed. Deku relies heavily on big, powerful punches. But when your enemy can just swap places with a rock or a civilian, Deku would be extremely limited in terms of what he can do. Also, I do not think Deku would be honest enough to tell Todou his ideal woman type – so he was doomed from the beginning.
3. Dio Brando
Anime: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders As I have said before, Deku is kind of a glass cannon. Not only that, but he also heavily relies on melee attacks to get any meaningful damage out. So what happens when he gets close to Dio to land a punch? He experiences zie Worldo and has a truck thrown onto his head. Being that Deku is kind of squishy, he would never even get the chance to figure out Dio’s ability – but would rather just die there on the spot. If he was more tenacious then maybe he could have stood a chance. But even that is wishful thinking.
2. Gon Freeccs
Anime: Hunter x Hunter I see this one being brought up from time to time, as the two characters have a pretty similar combat style. But the battle wouldn’t even be close in my opinion. In their base forms, Gon has displayed a far greater speed, more powerful attacks, and even better combat strategy than Deku. And the power discrepancy only gets worst if we pin 100% One for All vs adult Gon. Adult Gon has just insane reflexes, and the power to throw you a thousand miles away. His defense is also a lot higher than Deku’s, at least when his guard is up that is. And his merciless mindset would give him an even further edge.
1. Sasuke Uchiha
Anime: Naruto: Shippuden I want to end the list with this one because of one simple prospect: Could Sasuke put One for All out of commission? At the beginning of Shippuden, we saw him pull a similar stunt when he faced Naruto and just slapped Kurama around. So I don’t think it’s impossible that he could do the same with the previous owners of One for All. I mean, Sasuke would win either way, as he has a much wider arsenal of abilities and moves at the speed of light, more or less. But I think that a genjutsu victory would be more satisfying. Plus, we might finally see someone actually die from Amaterasu!
