For generations, the world of My Hero Academia has been defined by a single rivalry: All Might versus All For One. The Symbol of Peace against the Symbol of Evil. One For All against the power to steal any quirk.
We saw them clash twice in the series—once six years before the main story, and again in Kamino Ward. But what about their primes? What if both fighters faced each other at their absolute peaks, with no injuries hampering All Might and All For One wielding his full arsenal?
Let’s analyze this ultimate hypothetical battle.
Understanding Prime All Might
The Symbol of Peace at His Peak
Before his fateful first battle with All For One, All Might was essentially invincible:
Physical Stats (Prime):
- Could change weather patterns with punches
- Speed appeared instantaneous to observers
- Durability allowed him to tank virtually anything
- Stamina was effectively limitless for practical purposes
One For All (Full Power):
- Eight generation’s worth of stockpiled power
- No time limit on usage
- Could be maintained indefinitely without strain
- Full access to pure strength enhancement
What Made Prime All Might Different
The All Might we see in the main series is a shadow of his former self:
Injury limitations:
- Lost his stomach and respiratory system to All For One
- Could only maintain hero form for limited hours (eventually minutes)
- Constant pain affected performance
- Each transformation drained his reserves further
Prime All Might had none of these restrictions. He could fight at 100% indefinitely, without worrying about time limits or physical degradation.
Documented Feats
Even in his injured state, All Might accomplished incredible things:
- Defeated All For One twice
- Changed the weather with United States of Smash
- Moved faster than eyes could track
- Punched with force measured in megatons
- Remained undefeated for his entire career
In his prime, these feats would have been even more impressive.
Understanding Prime All For One
The Original Symbol of Evil
All For One has existed for over a century, accumulating quirks the entire time. At his prime, he possessed:
Known Powerful Quirks:
- Warping: Instant teleportation of self and others
- Search: Track up to 100 people and know their weaknesses
- Air Cannon: Devastating ranged attacks
- Impact Recoil: Reflects damage back at attackers
- Springlike Limbs: Enhanced physical attacks
- Kinetic Booster: Multiplies attack power
- Strength Enhancement: Multiple stacked strength quirks
- Forced Quirk Activation: Controls others’ quirks
- Life Force: Extended lifespan and vitality
Plus hundreds more we never saw him use.
The Quirk Combination Advantage
All For One’s true strength isn’t any single quirk—it’s combination. He can:
- Stack multiple strength-enhancing quirks
- Use defensive quirks while attacking
- Layer speed, power, and durability simultaneously
- Adapt his loadout mid-battle
Documented Feats
All For One’s power is legendary:
- Fought on equal ground with All Might (while All Might was already injured)
- Destroyed city blocks with single attacks
- Ruled Japan’s underworld for a century
- Defeated multiple One For All users
- Survived All Might’s ultimate attack (though barely)
- Created and controlled Nomu technology
The Historical Battles
First Battle (Six Years Before Canon)
The fight that defined both characters’ fates:
What happened:
- All For One inflicted All Might’s critical injury
- All Might defeated All For One, destroying his face
- Both were severely diminished afterward
- All For One required life support; All Might lost his ability to fight indefinitely
Key points:
- This was already post-prime for All For One (he’d lost some power over the decades)
- All Might still won despite being caught somewhat off-guard
- The victory was pyrrhic—both were permanently damaged
Kamino Ward (Second Battle)
What happened:
- All Might was at less than 10% of his original power
- All For One was using a life-support mask and hadn’t fully recovered
- Despite this, their clash devastated the area
- All Might won by burning out his remaining One For All
Prime vs Prime: The Analysis
Category 1: Pure Physical Stats
All Might:
- One For All provides stockpiled superhuman strength
- Effectively unlimited at full power
- Speed appears teleportation-like
- Durability tanked All For One’s best shots
All For One:
- Multiple stacked strength quirks
- Can theoretically match or exceed One For All
- Speed quirks available
- Layered defensive quirks
Verdict: Slight edge to All Might. One For All is specifically designed to be the ultimate power stockpile. All For One can approximate it with stacking, but One For All’s pure output seems marginally higher.
Category 2: Versatility
All Might:
- One trick (massive physical enhancement)
- No ranged options beyond creating wind pressure
- No defensive abilities beyond tanking
- Predictable fighting style
All For One:
- Hundreds of quirks available
- Ranged attacks, teleportation, mind games
- Multiple defensive layers
- Can adapt to any situation
Verdict: Overwhelming advantage to All For One. This is his primary strength—there’s nothing All Might can do that All For One can’t counter or match in some way.
Category 3: Combat Intelligence
All Might:
- Straightforward fighter
- Relies on superior power rather than tactics
- Limited strategic options
- Prefers direct confrontation
All For One:
- Century of combat experience
- Manipulator and strategist
- Has observed All Might extensively
- Plans multiple moves ahead
Verdict: All For One by far. He’s had over a hundred years to perfect his combat approach, while All Might solves most problems with overwhelming force.
Category 4: Stamina/Endurance
All Might (Prime):
- Effectively unlimited stamina
- One For All doesn’t drain him in prime state
- Can maintain full power indefinitely
- No known exhaustion limit
All For One:
- Life Force quirk provides immense stamina
- Multiple quirks may have cooldowns or limits
- Has fought extended battles
- Presumably can last as long as needed
Verdict: Draw. Both can fight extended battles without issue at their peaks.
Category 5: Win Conditions
How All Might Wins:
- Lands a decisive blow before All For One can adapt
- Overwhelms with superior speed and power
- Exploits any opening with fight-ending force
- Essentially: “Hit him really hard”
How All For One Wins:
- Uses versatility to avoid All Might’s attacks
- Wears down All Might over extended combat
- Lands Impact Recoil or similar counter
- Exploits All Might’s straightforward approach
The Verdict: Who Actually Wins?
Arguments for All Might Victory
- Historical precedent: All Might has beaten All For One every time they’ve fought, even when severely disadvantaged
- One For All supremacy: The quirk exists specifically to defeat All For One—it’s designed for this purpose
- Speed differential: All Might’s speed may simply exceed All For One’s ability to respond, even with defensive quirks
- Mental advantage: All For One genuinely fears All Might, suggesting he knows he’d lose
Arguments for All For One Victory
- Versatility gap: All For One has answers to everything All Might can do
- Strategic superiority: All For One wouldn’t fight fair and would exploit every advantage
- Accumulation: A century of quirk collecting should eventually overcome One For All
- Counter abilities: Impact Recoil and similar quirks could theoretically redirect All Might’s power back at him
Our Analysis: All Might Wins (High-Difficulty)
Despite All For One’s massive advantages in versatility and intelligence, we believe Prime All Might takes this fight approximately 7 times out of 10.
Key reasons:
One For All’s purpose: The quirk was created and passed down specifically to defeat All For One. At its peak (before it had to pass to Deku without full power), it represents humanity’s cumulative answer to All For One’s tyranny.
Speed is decisive: All Might’s speed at prime likely exceeds All For One’s reaction time with any quirk combination. If All For One can’t react, he can’t defend.
All For One’s fear is real: The story consistently shows All For One views All Might as a genuine threat. He didn’t attack Japan directly while All Might was active. He waited until All Might was weakened to make moves. This suggests he knows the outcome at equal power.
The counter problem: Impact Recoil and similar abilities have limits. All Might’s attacks might simply exceed what these quirks can handle, or his speed might prevent their activation.
The 30% Scenario
All For One wins when:
- He successfully evades long enough to find a weakness
- All Might makes a tactical error he can exploit
- A specific quirk combination proves effective
- Extended combat eventually favors his adaptability
It’s not impossible—All For One is genuinely one of the strongest beings in My Hero Academia. But prime versus prime, All Might’s raw power appears superior.
What the Story Tells Us
Kohei Horikoshi structured My Hero Academia around All Might being the unquestionable strongest hero of his era. All For One’s entire strategy involved:
- Waiting for All Might to be injured
- Creating Shigaraki as a successor
- Never directly challenging prime All Might
This narrative framing suggests the author views All Might as the stronger combatant, with All For One’s advantages lying in patience and manipulation rather than pure power.
Reading and Watching
Manga: My Hero Academia manga on Amazon contains the full All Might vs All For One battles
Anime: My Hero Academia on Crunchyroll—the Kamino Ward battle (Season 3) is considered one of the best fights in anime
Conclusion
Prime All Might versus Prime All For One represents the ultimate clash in My Hero Academia—hope against despair, straightforward heroism against cunning villainy, accumulated power against stolen power.
While All For One’s versatility and intelligence make him a terrifying opponent, All Might’s pure power, speed, and the very nature of One For All give him the edge in direct combat. There’s a reason All For One spent decades avoiding this confrontation and why the world considered All Might invincible.
At their peaks, the Symbol of Peace defeats the Symbol of Evil—but not easily, and not without acknowledging that the battle could have gone differently.
That’s what makes their rivalry so compelling: it’s not a stomp. It’s a genuine clash between two titans whose conflict defined an era.
Related: My Hero Academia Watch Order | Strongest Quirks Ranked | Best Anime Rivalries