I foresaw Deku losing One for All since we saw the 9 users of One for All communicating with him at the beginning of Joint Training Arc, and more in particular since Meta Liberation Army Arc when Shigaraki got his boost in strength. That also brings be to the connection The One for All and All for One Quirks had during the Paranormal War Arc when Deku confronted Shigaraki, and they had that meta world link.....
Let me put explain it better in this sense:
All for One & One for All both are inverses of each other.
Yin (Darkness) and Yang (Light)
The Sun and The Moon
If you remove one of hem from the equation than it cause a massive imbalance as whole, and the same concept in principle applies these two quirks. One could also say that All for One & One for All function differently... which is true, but at the same time they also compliment one another too in many ways too. Which is why from a thematic stance and a symbolism stance that is poetic that One for All disappears from Deku at the same time as Shigaraki began to crumble away while maintaining both quirks after he had stolen it from him.
I am very aware how pissed off people are about this outcome for Deku, and more in particular how they hurt and betrayed they felt that this ruins the series for them. As for my own personal stance, I am not one of those fans who are an outrage about this especially because this whole series I started just right after the Naruto manga ended... I wanted to find that series and fill that void which led me to creating this thread for everyone because there's something special about My Hero Academia and it's character. Now over a period of time after the manga debuted and particular after the anime, I did slowly find myself feeling falling out of love with the series which led to my appearances on this thread to diminish slowly even when it came to chapter discussions on my channels (with the exception of podcasts after each arc ended).
That said, I never once dropped reading the manga at all, it was still a series I kept up with reading on a weekly basis unless Kohei took a break from the magazine for health reasons which is totally understandable. Which did become more frequent especially when we were still in the midst of this final war arc of the series, and there's a lot that can be discussed about the arc as a whole, but I'll save it after the story is said and done.
This brings me to my final point which is Deku's current status... Will he be forever quirkless once his embers disappear? or will One for All somehow some way return?
Well let's break these down into 2 scenarios....
Scenario 1: Deku Remains Quirkless
Something worth mentioning is during Kohei's conceptual stages... Deku was originally meant to be quirkless, and was suggested by his editor that he should have a quirk so that he didn't fall behind others.
Why did Kohei initially concept him to be quirkless throughout the series beforehand?
Let's just Deku was going to be based a hero who was based around using gadgets... Much like Batman!
Now, with the latest chapter... it does make me wonder if this what Kohei is striving to do by going back to that original concept he envisioned with Deku from the beginning.
Essentially a quirkless hero who relies on gadgets, again... Like Batman
The chances of this scenario outcome I'd say is (45%)
Now as for Scenario 2: Deku regains One for All
This is one, I am not going to delve so much into because it's rather simple. Deku can just visit Eri so that she could do the same thing that happened to Mirio during the Paranormal War.
I do feel like this taking place will undermine what took place in the final fight between Deku and Shigaraki, and that's the only hindrance should this happen.
The chances of this scenario outcome I would say is (45%)
Just as evenly possible with scenario 1.
Wait a second, Lucky that logistically doesn't add up... 45% + 45% = 90%
"So.... what about the last 10% care to explain that?"
Yes, this bring me to a wild card scenario...
Wild Card Scenario: Deku gains a new quirk
Immediate question: "OMG, are you thinking Deku has had a quirk this whole time hidden inside him?"
No No, that is simply not where I am going with this at all. Remember when I said how All for One & One for All were like Yin and Yang. One can't survive without the other.... The thematic and symbolism aspect of it and all, right?
Well, what if I were to tell you that All for One and One for All disappearing from existence was only just the beginning.
That it leads to a brand new quirk that is comprised of both All for One & One for All together, and that this new hypothetical quirk resides within Deku himself.
Just the idea of this concept has floating around in my head for a couple months now, and to me..... It's probably the most fascinating scenario in comparison to the previous two I talked about above.
Now the chances of this scenario is a low (10%)
Oh and as for Deku's new haircut, it's honestly fine and.... if we're being totally realistic about this.... He dealt with his greatest adversary at a fight to the death, and given how serious Deku's injuries were.... There's a lot that went into the surgical procedure which also meant ridding that section of Deku's hair because when you still look at it from the back... he still has a good amount of his hair in tact, and I think it'll be something that he grows again over time.
Those are just my thoughts on Deku being quirkless now, and his new haircut.