'Izuku Midoriya , also known by his hero name Deku , is a superhero and the main protagonist of the manga series My Hero Academia, created by Kōhei Horikoshi. In the series, he is an ambitious first-year high schooler and the 9th holder of "One For All", a superpower which combines eight different individual superpowers, or "Quirks", together and creates powerful bursts of energy, and also has the unique ability to be passed off to other people. He was later changed to a high-school student for My Hero Academia, however, his character remains largely unchanged. This prototype for My Hero Academias main protagonist was Mikumo Akatani , a black-haired Quirkless boy who would have utilized gadgets to become a hero. Horikoshi revised the design of Akatani's character, as he was especially dissatisfied with the hair and shortened it for Midoriya. Initially the protagonist was to remain Quirkless. Horikoshi changed the direction of Midoriya's character by adding his acquisition of One For All, due to suggestions from editors that argued that a powerless main protagonist would be overshadowed by other superpowered characters.

My Hero Academia is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kōhei Horikoshi. It has been serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump since July 2014, with its chapters collected in 40 tankōbon volumes as of April 2024. Set in a world where superpowers have become commonplace, the story follows Izuku Midoriya, a boy who was born without a Quirk but still dreams of becoming a superhero himself. He is scouted by the world's greatest hero, All Might, who bestows his Quirk to Midoriya after recognizing his potential, and helps to enroll him in a prestigious high school for superheroes in training.