23 Best All Might Quotes — 'I Am Here!' & My Hero Academia's Symbol of Peace
Toshinori Yagi — All Might — is the Symbol of Peace. When he walks into a room, everyone feels safe. When he tells Izuku Midoriya “you can become a hero,” reality adjusts itself to make that sentence true. Kohei Horikoshi wrote All Might as the ideal of Superman transplanted into shonen: a hero so powerful and so public that crime rates dropped because criminals believed he would personally show up if they tried anything.
But All Might is also dying. His body, gutted by an old injury from All For One, can only hold the muscular “Symbol of Peace” form for three hours a day, then two, then one. The rest of the time, he’s a skeletal, coughing man who spends his days teaching at U.A. and trying to bequeath his power before he gives out. These 23 quotes cover both All Mights — the one who shouts “I AM HERE!” and the one who tells Deku, in a small voice, “now it’s your turn.”
About All Might
Toshinori Yagi, known publicly as All Might, is a major character in My Hero Academia (2014-2024) by Kohei Horikoshi. Former Number One Hero, Symbol of Peace, and eighth user of the transferable quirk “One For All,” All Might spent his career hunting the terrorist All For One — the man who killed his mentor Nana Shimura. Their final battle left All Might with a gaping wound in his torso and a massively weakened quirk capacity.
Still masquerading as a peak-condition hero, All Might takes a teaching position at U.A. High School specifically to find a successor. He meets Izuku Midoriya and, recognizing a boy willing to risk his life for others, gives him One For All. Their student-mentor relationship forms the emotional backbone of MHA. In the series’ climax, All Might — now completely quirkless — still walks out to fight All For One, because that’s what the Symbol of Peace does.
His signature: towering muscular form, blonde hair in twin spikes, permanent grin, the iconic “I am here!” entrance line, and the gaunt skeletal version that coughs blood between hero work.
The Iconic Entrance
"I am here!"
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 1, recurring)
"Because I am here, nothing bad can happen today. That's the promise."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 10, paraphrased)
"A true hero saves not only lives — but also hearts."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 1)
Choosing Deku
"Young man. You can become a hero."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 2)
"Your body moved before your head. That's what every real hero does first."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 2, to Izuku)
"I'm giving you One For All. It is my faith in you, made physical."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 3)
On Being the Symbol
"Being the Symbol means people trust that things will be okay. Betraying that trust is the worst sin a hero can commit."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 59, paraphrased)
"I keep smiling because people are watching. That smile is part of the job."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 10)
Against All For One
"UNITED STATES OF SMASH!"
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 94, final punch against All For One)
"All For One. You have caused enough pain. Today it ends."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 92)
"Now it's your turn."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 95, to Deku after retiring)
To Class 1-A
"Young heroes — go beyond. Plus Ultra."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 11)
"Every one of you has the potential to save the person next to you. Never forget that."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 45, paraphrased)
The Weakened Form
"Don't tell anyone you saw me like this. Heroes don't show their cracks — except to the ones they choose."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 2, to Izuku after revealing his true form)
"My three hours of muscle were a borrowed luxury. The real me is the man who coughs between fights."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 59, paraphrased)
Nana Shimura
"Nana Shimura gave her life so I could inherit. I spent every day since trying to be worthy of that."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 93)
"Master — your grandson is Tomura Shigaraki. I will save him. I promise."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 200, paraphrased)
Quirkless — Still Fighting
"I may be quirkless now. But the Symbol of Peace doesn't need a quirk to stand up."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 400, paraphrased)
"I am the foundation. My successor will be the roof. That is how generations work."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 250, paraphrased)
Final Fight
"All For One, even without my quirk, I am still the man who beat you once. Come and find out if I can do it again."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 402)
"Deku, keep going. Don't look back for me. That's an order from your teacher."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 405)
Legacy
"I'm the eighth. Deku is the ninth. The line continues, even when I can't."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 300)
"A hero dies many times. Retirement is only one kind of death. The important one is the one that saves someone."
— All Might, My Hero Academia (Chapter 96, paraphrased)
Why These Quotes Resonate
All Might works because Horikoshi lets the myth be real and the man behind it be fragile. The muscular form isn’t the character — the coughing skeleton is. And that coughing skeleton still keeps showing up. “Now it’s your turn” is shonen’s greatest passing-the-torch line because the torch is literally leaving All Might’s hands; he has nothing left to fight with except a whistle on the sideline, and he still stands up when Deku is in trouble.
That’s why All Might’s quotes age beautifully. They’re about the weight of public hope, the pressure of being someone’s reason to believe, and the grace of knowing when to let go.
Frequently Asked Questions about All Might Quotes
What is All Might's most famous quote?
"I am here!" — first appearing in Chapter 1 and recurring throughout the series — is All Might's signature entrance line. The expanded version frames his entire role as Symbol of Peace: "Because I am here, nothing bad can happen today. That's the promise."
What did All Might say to Deku?
In Chapter 2, All Might tells Izuku: "Young man. You can become a hero." He explains why: "Your body moved before your head. That's what every real hero does first." The transfer of One For All comes one chapter later: "I'm giving you One For All. It is my faith in you, made physical."
What is "United States of Smash"?
"UNITED STATES OF SMASH!" is All Might's final attack against All For One in Chapter 94, the climactic punch that ends his original Symbol of Peace career. After the fight he turns to Deku and delivers his most famous passing-the-torch line in Chapter 95: "Now it's your turn."
Is All Might quirkless now?
Yes. After passing One For All to Deku, All Might becomes completely quirkless. In Chapter 400 he insists: "I may be quirkless now. But the Symbol of Peace doesn't need a quirk to stand up." In Chapter 402 he confronts All For One again: "Even without my quirk, I am still the man who beat you once. Come and find out if I can do it again."
Who was Nana Shimura?
Nana Shimura was All Might's mentor and the seventh user of One For All. She gave her life so All Might — Toshinori Yagi — could inherit. The article includes his Chapter 93 line: "Nana Shimura gave her life so I could inherit. I spent every day since trying to be worthy of that." Her grandson, Tomura Shigaraki, becomes the series' ultimate antagonist.
Related Characters
Same series — My Hero Academia:
- Deku — All Might’s successor
- Bakugo — the student he couldn’t choose, who became a hero anyway
- Todoroki — Class 1-A student
Cross-series comparisons:
- Jiraiya — another mentor figure passing down power
- Goku — the symbol-of-hope archetype in Dragon Ball
Explore more in the My Hero Academia hub and the full Anime & Manga Quotes collection.