My Hero Academia Episode 166: From Aizawa

Izuku reaches Tenko Shimura inside Shigaraki’s inner world and tries to grasp him before the boy is pulled further into the darkness, but an invisible barrier blocks him from fully entering the memory.

The episode shifts through Tenko’s past as he is shown as a small child in a deeply traumatic household, including scenes of abuse from his father Kotaro Shimura and the misery surrounding the family. Izuku pushes deeper, trying to reach Tenko through the pain, while the memory resists him like the last layer of defense around the origin of Shigaraki’s hatred.

As the scene continues, Nana Shimura is forced to face the family tragedy head-on and breaks down over the suffering her son and grandson endured. Her grief becomes central to the moment, and the emotional weight of seeing Tenko’s childhood makes it clear that the villain’s path was shaped by a chain of pain inside the Shimura family.

Izuku refuses to let go of Tenko, even as the child’s body and the inner-world memory begin to collapse around them. His determination keeps him reaching for Tenko when it would be easier to pull away, and the episode emphasizes his insistence on saving the person beneath the villain.

At the same time, the larger battle reaches a turning point as All For One takes advantage of the chaos and asserts control over the situation. The episode ends with the conflict escalating beyond Izuku’s reach, leaving Tenko’s fate and the fight outside the inner world hanging in the balance.