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I get it. Kirishima's pain over not being able to do anything... and Todoroki's regrets over having Bakugo snatched away before his eyes. I regret it all too. Still... this is no time to let our emotions get the better of us.Mezo Shoji to his classmates about Katsuki Bakugo's kidnapping in "From Iida to Midoriya"
Mezo Shoji (
Appearance
Mezo is a tall, muscular young man with pale gray hair, swept forwards, that covers most of his face, bent downwards at almost a right angle over his eye. He has six arms, all attached to each other by a web of skin, which are very physically strong, and while his Quirk is not in use only the front two arms have hands, the rest ending in thin stumps.
While less pronounced in the anime, he has a slightly elongated face, his eyes set more towards the sides, the majority of which, for some reason, he has always kept hidden by a blue mask, which covers him from just below his eyes to the base of his neck. He has never been seen without it on, as he doesn't appear when the other students are bathing in the hot springs, and he wears it with every outfit. To speak and eat, he simply grows a mouth on the end of one of his tentacles, although once, in the Forest Training Camp Arc, when his arm was injured, he has been seen speaking with his actual mouth. Although he has no discernable ears, he doesn't have to use his Quirk to hear.
During school hours, he wears the regular male U.A. uniform, the only notable difference between his and the other students' being that his is sleeveless to make room for his six tentacles, and he wears a waistcoat rather than a blazer. He also doesn't wear the usual brown dress shoes, instead replacing them with a pair of thick-soled black espadrilles.
His hero costume consists of a tight blue tank top, six white markings resembling eyes decorating it like a dice, connected at the top to a darker, more indigo-colored mask, its design the same as the one he usually wears. He has a belt with another, larger eye shape embedded into its center, this time yellow, below which he wears slightly baggy trousers to match his shirt, two darker lines running down the sides of his legs, and indigo boots.
Personality
Despite his frightening appearance, Mezo is a very friendly and gentle person who will work nicely with anyone. He is not the type to hold grudges, showing no ill will towards those that harm him unwillingly.
Mezo is quite selfless and willing to risk his life for a friend. He can be empathetic and understanding, but still shows a sense of maturity and responsibility that prevents himself from acting under emotional impulses, even if he feels regretful about it. It is evident that he is very protective of his fellow classmates, especially if they are hurt or injured.
Mezo claims to hold no desire for material needs, being fine with having few possessions of his own. This is a trait he has been carrying since childhood.
Abilities
Overall Abilities: Mezo has proven to be highly capable individual, as his skills allowed him to earn 6th place in the Quirk Apprehension Test. He also has a good handle on his Quirk, Dupli-Arms, which he can use for both combat and sensory purposes. Dupli-Arms makes Mezo excellent for spying and stake out missions, since his tentacle-created sensorial parts have heightened functions. While Mezo is strong enough to carry more than one person on his back with minimal effort, he is further capable of shielding or hiding them from danger thanks to his Dupli-Arms having a webbed structure. This also means that the tentacles can function like improvised wings, letting Mezo glide for a limited amount of time. He also possess good camaraderie, using his Quirk to detect nearby enemies, and using his tentacles to cause a distraction so that his comrades can take their opponents by surprise.
Izuku Midoriya stated that the entire Bakugo Escort Squad (consisting of himself, Shoto Todoroki, Katsuki Bakugo, Fumikage Tokoyami, and Mezo) working together, have the potential to take on someone of All Might's caliber. During the Joint Training Arc, he was able to hold his own against Pony Tsunotori, the fastest student in Class 1-B, effectively countering all of her attacks, even the surprise attack she attempted to use, until Mashirao Ojiro stepped in to help Mezo restrain Pony.
- Enhanced Strength: Mezo possesses a a high degree of physical strength, as he was able to exert as much as 540 kilos of force during the Quirk Apprehension Test. The strength displayed during this test indicates he has more than enough strength to crush a human‘s skull with just one of his many hands. For combat, Mezo uses Quirk multiplies his already great physical brawn by replicating his arms, giving him force equivalent to at least half a ton when using just one set of his tentacle arms. He was able to carry both Tsuyu Asui and Minoru Mineta on his back without any difficulty. Mezo has also shown to be strong enough to crush solid bone, as shown when he broke Pony Tsunotori's horns.
- Enhanced Speed: Despite his size and muscular physique, Mezo possesses impressive speed. He was able to pull several of his classmates out of the way before Kurogiri had the time to warp them to different locations. Mezo was able to intercept Himiko Toga, a swift villain with whom Shota Aizawa and Izuku had trouble keeping up, before she could reach an injured Izuku.
Keen Intellect: Mezo is known to be quite intelligent, scoring 10th place in the midterms, displaying his skill in academics. He is also very analytical, as he was able to effectively discern that the reason Fumikage lost control of Dark Shadow, which the Jet-Black Hero had trained to keep under control in the darkness, was due to Fumikage's negative emotions influencing Dark Shadow, making the Quirk even more powerful and unruly in the darkness. Mezo was also able to deduce the mechanics behind the Quirk of Mr. Compress just from seeing the after-effect of the latter’s power once.
Quirk
Dupli-Arms (
Super Moves
- Octoblow (オクトブロー Okutoburō?): Mezo manifests several arms at once, allowing him to unleash a barrage of blows to defend himself.
Stats
Battles & Events
| Battles & Events |
Trivia
Artwork depicting Mezo's possible face.
- While Mezo's face has not been officially unveiled in the series yet, a piece of concept art showcases what could possibly be Mezo's true face, featuring a wide mouth with a set of jagged teeth. The same concept artwork also implies that Mezo is capable of using his Quirk to replicate miniature versions of his head.
- Mezo's known U.A. data is as follows:
- Student No. 11 in Class 1-A.
- Ranked 6th during the Quirk Apprehension Test.
- Ranked 10th in Class 1-A's mid-term grades.
- Ranked in the Top 42 of the U.A. Sports Festival First-Year Stage.
- Mezo's name comes from "壁に耳あり障子に目あり" (Kabe ni mimi ari shōji ni me ari? lit. "walls have ears, doors have eyes").
- Mezo likes takoyaki and squid ink pasta.[1]
- Horikoshi considers Mezo fun to draw due to his less human-like features.
- Measuring at 187 centimeters, Mezo is the tallest student in his class.
- He is also, ironically enough, the youngest of the class, with his birthday taking place in late February. He is younger than Tsuyu by thirteen days who is the second youngest student in Class 1-A.
Quotes
- (To his classmates, regarding Katsuki Bakugo's kidnapping) "I get it. Kirishima's pain over not being able to do anything... and Todoroki's regrets over having Bakugo snatched away before his eyes. I regret it all too. Still... this is no time to let our emotions get the better of us."[2]