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The ninth episode of the final season of My Hero Academia was released on November 29, 2025. It talks about the peaceful ending that comes after the big battle with All For One and Shigaraki. The episode is slower than most and looks at the characters we've been following for eight seasons.
Episode 168 adapts manga chapters 424 to 426. It shows Class 1-A officially becoming Class 2-A. The anime does a great job with these chapters, but there are a few changes. Fans who read the manga will notice some big and small differences in how Studio Bones showed this part of the story.
The hospital scenes hit different
Bakugo's hospital visit plays out mostly the same in both versions. He learns about the damage to his arm and refuses prosthetics, choosing physical therapy instead. But the My Hero Academia anime made one smart change here.
In the manga, we see a flashback of Mirko in the hospital choosing her prosthetic limbs. The anime swapped this for a visual of her already suited up in her hero costume with those limbs. It's a small tweak, but it keeps the pacing tight and the focus on Bakugo's determination.
The real tearjerker moment comes when Bakugo finds out that Deku lost One For All. My Hero Academia nailed the emotion here. The anime added a detail where Izuku tears up too while trying to comfort Bakugo, which wasn't explicitly shown in the manga. It makes the scene even more heartbreaking because both boys are putting on brave faces for each other.
Graduation gets a makeover
The graduation ceremony at U.A. High School feels different between the two versions. The My Hero Academia manga showed a packed auditorium for the third year's send-off. The anime scaled it down with fewer people in attendance. This isn't necessarily bad, it just gives the moment a more intimate vibe.
There's also a funny change with Mineta's reaction to seeing Hagakure's face. In the manga, he just comments on her appearance before Aizawa shuts him down. The anime cranked up the comedy by having him actually try to pounce on her before getting wrangled up. Classic Mineta behavior, and the anime version of My Hero Academia knows how to play up those gag moments.
Aoyama's farewell scene got adjusted, too. When he pulls out his cheese to address the class, the manga has him shoving it right in Deku's face. The anime has him holding it out to the whole class instead. Small difference, but it changes the framing slightly.
The Todoroki family's final moment
This is where My Hero Academia really took some creative liberties. The scene with Toya (Dabi) at Central Hospital is devastating in both versions, but the anime made some visual changes. Toya starts crying earlier in the anime compared to the manga. And those tears are pure rather than mixed with blood, like in the source material. It's a choice that makes the moment slightly less horrifying but still incredibly sad.
The manga's loud beeping from Toya's heart rate monitor? Gone in the anime. This actually helps the quieter, more emotional beats of the conversation breathe a bit more. Watching Shoto learn that his brother also loves soba hits harder without constant beeping in the background, and My Hero Academia deserves credit for knowing when to pull back on the intensity.
What got cut in My Hero Academia
Here's the biggest change: the anime completely skipped Hawks' conversation with Lady Nagant and the reunion between Gentle and La Brava. These scenes are in chapter 426 of the My Hero Academia manga, but episode 9 chose to focus solely on the core emotional arcs instead. According to the preview, Lady Nagant's scene might show up in episode 10, so it's not totally gone, just moved around.
The anime also cut a shot of Spinner's scales on a tray during Deku's monologue about the heroes' fight not being over. And Koki Terumoto's first appearance didn't make it into this episode either.
The opening gets an update
Sharp-eyed fans noticed My Hero Academia added a blink-and-you-miss-it detail to the opening. At the very end, when everyone's watching the stars, there's a brief shot of two kids holding hands.
Some fans thought it was Deku and Uraraka as children, but it's actually the blonde siblings who appeared earlier in the episode, watching the reconstruction. The girl has the Endeavor bag that her brother promised to buy her after Gigantomachia's rampage. It's a tiny addition that connects back to the hope and rebuilding themes.
Final thoughts
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Studio Bones did a solid job adapting these chapters. The changes mostly serve to tighten pacing and emphasize emotional moments over exposition. My Hero Academia episode 9 proves that sometimes less is more, especially when wrapping up character arcs that have been building for years.
With only two episodes left plus an OVA, every scene counts, and this episode knew exactly where to spend its time.
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