WARNING: The following contains spoilers for My Hero Academia, Chapter #329, "In the Nick of Time, A Big-Time Maverick From the West," by Kohei Horikoshi, Caleb Cook and John Hunt, available in English from Viz Media.
In the My Hero Academia manga, hero society has been in a state of constant turmoil for months now in the aftermath of the war against the Paranormal Liberation Front. The undermanned heroes are struggling to regain the trust of the civilians and keep Japan from total collapse. Meanwhile, the major villains have been laying low. That is, until Chapter #329.
The last time readers saw Tomura Shigaraki, he was being controlled by All For One against his will. All For One used Shigaraki to wreak havoc in Tartarus and freed all the villains who were imprisoned there, including AFO himself. Shigaraki has been resting ever since so his body could become the perfect vessel for AFO. All Might deduced that this would be in three days' time in Chapter #328, and now Shigaraki has finally reemerged ready for battle.
The United States of America's #1 Pro Hero, known as Star and Stripe, was introduced in My Hero Academia Chapter #328 as she was on her way to Japan. She is determined to answer her master All Might's request for help. In typical fashion, All For One sees this as an opportunity to take advantage of and reveals his hopes of stealing Star and Stripe's quirk.
All For One explains to Spinner that they've won the game of hide-and-seek they were playing against the heroes and police. Spinner suggested they could've won by simply leaving the country, but All For One clarifies that winning that game was just the short-term objective, while obtaining One For All is the mid-game objective. This prompts Spinner to question if obtaining OFA isn't the final goal.
In response, All For One does not specify what exactly his final goal is. He instead explains that he's planned ahead for a long life, and within those plans, the greatest obstacle -- and ultimate opportunity -- is now presented to him in the form of Star and Stripe. He calls her the strongest woman around and says that if he manages to steal her Quirk, the rest of the war will be just a formality for them.
Star and Stripe's Quirk is yet to be revealed, so it's unclear why AFO obtaining it would have such an immense impact on the war. My Hero Academia readers may not have to wait long to find out, as Shigaraki appears before the American hero in Chapter #329's final moments. He meets her above the clouds on a flying nomu, and she asks if he's All For One. He responds by saying it's a good question and rhetorically asks, "What exactly am I?"
This meeting sets up a potential fight that could have devastating consequences for the heroes, depending on who wins. Considering how highly All For One spoke of Star and Stripe and her Quirk, fighting her would not be a simple task for Shigaraki. Moreover, he appears to be the only villain present, while Endeavor, Hawks and Best Jeanist are all on their way.
