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Kurogiri in My Hero Academia is one of many villains in the show. His story goes a little differently than most, and this article covers it.
Kurogiri is one of the principal antagonists of My Hero Academia and the right-hand man of Tomura Shigaraki, the leader of the League of Villains. When they are operating their small crew of rogues, his mist-like shape and warp gate powers are invaluable for slipping in and out of locations without being noticed.
As My Hero Academia continues its run, we discover that Kurogiri’s character is much more complex than we knew. There are some shocking twists linking his true form and creation into the series’ overall story. This article covers all the important information about his character.
Kurogiri’s Introduction and Role in the League of Villains
We first encounter Kurogiri in My Hero Academia when he shows up with Tomura Shigaraki during the USJ (Unforeseen Simulation Joint) attack when Class 1-A was at its rescue training. Wearing formal bartender garb alongside a steam-like purple-black torso and glowing yellow eyes, Kurogiri is immediately recognizable as someone who is both classy and scary.
Kurogiri serves as the voice of reason within the League of Villains. Although Shigaraki could be irritable or even throw tantrums, especially in the show’s early stages, Kurogiri remains calm for the most part. He runs the League’s bar hideout, mixing drinks and keeping the peace. This role makes him come off as the second-in-command of the group, the careful hand behind Shigaraki’s shaky leadership.
It is also Kurogiri who acts as a link between the League and their mysterious benefactor, All For One. He sends messages, schedules meetings, and follows through to ensure the League is doing what All For One wants it to do. This position emphasizes just how much All For One trusts him, placing him as a guardian of the group and as a supervisor in the case of Shigaraki.
Kurogiri’s Quirk
My Hero Academia‘s Kurogiri has one of the most useful quirks for a group like the League of Villains. His quirk is called Warp Gate. This enables him to create portals to other places, allowing himself and others to travel at a moment’s notice. The black gateways range from portals barely wide enough for one person to those measuring enough to accommodate whole groups.
The strategic value of this quirk cannot be overstated. It gives the League of Villains incredible mobility, allowing them to:
- Launch surprise attacks anywhere.
- Escape quickly when things go wrong.
- Move between hideouts without being tracked.
- Transport allies or enemies to specific locations.
There are some limitations to his power. Kurogiri needs to know the exact location he is creating a portal to, and he has a maximum range. Still, these restrictions do not significantly reduce how dangerous this ability makes him. Without Kurogiri’s quirk, the League would have been captured many times over.
Kurogiri’s Involvement in Key Battles
Kurogiri’s involvement in various critical events and battles is a key factor in My Hero Academia. His first major move is during the USJ incident, where he splits up Class 1-A’s students, sending them to different sections of the facility. This strategy nearly works, though the students prove more capable than expected.
During the Hosu City incident, Kurogiri transports Shigaraki, Dabi, and Spinner to create chaos while Hero Killer Stain operates in the same area. Though not directly fighting, his support role makes the entire operation easier to orchestrate. In the training camp attack, Kurogiri’s warp gates allow the Vanguard Action Squad to kidnap Bakugo and escape before the pro heroes can respond effectively. Without his transportation, things could have gone very badly for Dabi, Mr. Compress, and the other League of Villains members that attacked.
Even in battles where he does not directly participate, his presence often serves as the League’s escape plan. This makes heroes wary of engaging the villains fully, knowing Kurogiri can help them vanish at any moment. This advantage continues until Kurogiri is finally captured by Gran Torino and the police force, a major blow to the League’s operations.
Kurogiri’s Relationship With Shigaraki
Kurogiri himself is one of the stranger characters in My Hero Academia, and his connection to Tomura Shigaraki is among the most interesting. But unlike the majority of the League, who signed up for their own reasons, Kurogiri sincerely wants Shigaraki to succeed and thrive.
He spends a good amount of time mentoring Shigaraki, shaping how he is growing into a villain leader. If Shigaraki has some sort of tantrum or makes a rash decision, Kurogiri subtly corrects his path or offers him counsel. Even when Shigaraki is threatening to do gross shit on stage, he keeps his cool and displays phenomenal patience.
This dynamic invites questions early on for its viewers: Why is Kurogiri so devoted to someone as unstable as Shigaraki? Why does he care so much about Shigaraki growing up? The answers arrive later in the series, revealing a bond much deeper than loyalty. Kurogiri seriously cares about Shigaraki’s health, which he hides behind a cool look. He provides Shigaraki with everything he needs and protects him from outside harm and his own reckless tendencies. This level of concern is more than what one might expect from a mere subordinate or colleague.
The Mystery Behind His Identity
As My Hero Academia goes on, more and more questions about Kurogiri’s true nature are raised. What makes him look so different from other characters? Why exactly is he so loyal to Shigaraki? These mysteries become intriguing when Detective Tsukauchi and Gran Torino start looking into a link between Kurogiri and a missing U.A. student from several years ago.
This investigation ultimately leads to one of the most shocking reveals in the series. Kurogiri is not a natural person with a Quirk but an artificial being made by All For One. More specifically, he is a Nomu- a modified human body enhanced with multiple Quirks. But unlike the mindless Nomus seen in the series, Kurogiri retains speech, intelligence, and purpose.
The secret of Kurogiri ties into the backstory of some former U.A. students, particularly Eraserhead (Shota Aizawa) and Present Mic (Hizashi Yamada). The base body that eventually became Kurogiri was a classmate named Oboro Shirakumo, who died during their schooling. This shocking revelation connects Kurogiri directly with some of the series’ most important heroes in an unexpected yet tragic manner.
The Tragic Reality of His Existence
Revealing Kurogiri’s real identity opens up one of the most tragic storylines in My Hero Academia. Oboro Shirakumo was a bright young hero student who died saving children in a nursery school from a villain’s attack. His body was recovered by none other than All For One, and he was turned into Kurogiri instead of being allowed to rest in peace.
This transformation was specifically designed with twisted intention. All For One created Kurogiri to protect and guide Shigaraki, knowing that Shirakumo had been a caring friend to Aizawa. He essentially twisted Shirakumo’s protective nature into a dark mirror of itself, forcing him to care for the future symbol of evil instead of becoming a hero.
When Eraserhead and Present Mic confront the captured Kurogiri, they desperately try to reach whatever might remain of their friend Shirakumo buried within him. For a fleeting moment, it felt like Shirakumo would prevail within Kurogiri’s mind, but the alterations were too strong.
Kurogiri is a tragic reminder of what Oboro Shirakumo could have been. All for One changes him into a warped version of what he used to be. He uses his caring nature to nurture a villain instead of saving people, all without knowing or choosing this fate. This makes him both villain and victim simultaneously.
Conclusion
On the surface, Kurogiri appears to be a calm, collected supporting villain whose warp gate Quirk makes him extremely dangerous. But as that tough exterior is chipped away, he is revealed to be a tragic figure whose mere existence is a cruel manipulation by All For One.
He goes from being Shigaraki’s sidekick to being one of the most tragic characters in the series. Similar to All for One, Horikosi Kohei (author of My Hero Academia) used Kurogiri to explore themes of identity, fate, and the way good intentions can be twisted and become evil. His character reminds us that in this world of heroes and villains, not everything is as simple as it first appears.
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