Is Dabi Endeavor’s Son? How Did He Get His Scars?

Countless theories pairing Endeavor and Dabi as father and son in My Hero Academia started gaining traction from the very beginning. After all, scenarios including a major villain being the son of the current number one hero are exciting, to say the least.

While these theories were superficially based on their vaguely similar powers, with more hints from the manga, this belief has all but solidified. Comments supporting or denying Dabi being a Todoroki flooded social media sites, but it was all put to a stop with the release of chapter 290. As it turns out, there’s a reason why Dabi is so fixated with Endeavor.

Is Dabi Endeavor’s Son?

Dabi is Endeavor’s eldest son Toya Todoroki who suffered critical burn injuries due to his father’s neglect and emotional abuse. Despite somehow surviving, Dabi faked his death and went on to become a villain with the purpose of destroying Endeavor’s hero career.

In chapter 290 of My Hero Academia, the war between heroes and villains was at its peak. With Gigantomachia finally arriving at Tomura's location and the heroes desperately trying to stop him, it seemed like things couldn't get tenser. However, it all changed with Dabi's appearance.

Facing Endeavor and Shoto on the ground, Dabi proclaimed that they should call him by his real name — Toya Todoroki. As he removed his hair dye to reveal pure white hair, Enji and Shoto were frozen in shock. Ignoring their states, Dabi broadcasted this entire conversation to the world, revealing Endeavor’s cruel deeds. To confirm his identity as a Todoroki, he showed his blood tests while deriding heroes as selfish individuals.

While fans were suspicious about Dabi's identity, they were not expecting this sudden reveal. Now that the deed is done, the question that now arises is what exactly did Endeavor do to turn his son into a villain single-handedly?

Endeavor’s life revolved around surpassing All Might and becoming the number one hero. He was so obsessed with this goal that he married Rei, a woman with an ice Quirk, to create the most powerful offspring possible. While we do know that Endeavor fulfilled this desire with the birth of Shoto Todoroki, he heavily compromised the lives of family, especially Toya Todoroki, in return.

Toya Todoroki was born to Endeavor and Rei with a fire Quirk more powerful than his father’s Hell Flame. Due to this, Enji placed his ambitions on Toya and trained him from a very young age, with the latter eager to learn. However, Dabi’s inherited resistance to cold instead of fire meant that he would burn himself every time he used his Quirk. This resulted in Endeavor labeling him a failure and refocusing his attention on creating another possibly powerful child.

At an impressionable age, Toya Todoroki was burdened with the hopes and dreams of his father and then thrown aside when he could no longer fulfill them. With Shoto's birth, he further fell into despair, resulting in his rapidly deteriorating mental health and negative impression of the hero society. In the end, it was Endeavor’s traumatic abuse and abandonment that led Dabi to become a villain.

How Did Dabi Get His Scars?

Dabi was determined to fulfill Endeavor’s dream even after being abandoned by him. Ignoring the numerous protests from his family, Toya started training independently despite ending up being covered in burns. However, this did not result in Endeavor paying any extra attention to him—quite the opposite.

To stop Toya from harming himself in vain, Endeavor focused his attention on creating a stronger child that could finally surpass All Might. After Shoto was born, Toya violently lashed out at him and Rei. During the following years, even though he developed a close bond with his siblings, Endeavor’s traumatic abuse had a strong emotional and mental impact on Toya. The latter trained even hard to prove himself despite its harmful consequences.

During one of his sessions at Sekoto Peak, Dabi had a growth spurt, and his flames' color changed from red to blue. However, even this change only resulted in Endeavor punishing Rei for allowing Toya to burn himself. Sometime later, Toya waited at Sekoto Peak for Endeavor, but the latter never showed up. 

The anguish and emotional trauma finally led Toya to lose control of his flames, resulting in a massive wildfire. Likewise, Dabi got his scars after being scorched with flames exceeding 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit.

The incident was so ferocious that Dabi was presumed to be dead. However, Toya ended up surviving, despite his severe burns. His traumatic experiences led to him dyeing his hair black and taking the name of Dabi. Now a villain, Dabi’s sole goal is to destroy Endeavor’s hero career and watch the hero society crumble to pieces.