Warning: the following article contains spoilers for My Hero Academia season six, and manga chapter 299.
The war is in motion on My Hero Academia, now with four episodes’ worth of content for fans to pick apart. Each new episode treats viewers to intense fight scenes while uncovering a little more information about beloved characters.
In the latest episodes, Hawks has been particularly relevant to the plot with long-overdue confrontations taking place. While we haven’t yet seen the best of Hawks versus Dabi, the two have already caused a stir in the fandom. Hawks’ name has been revealed by the villain, leading everyone to question how he knows it in the first place. Feel free to stick around if you’d also like to find out, but be warned—spoilers ahead.
Dabi uses Hawks’ real name
During Hawks’ final confrontation with Twice, Dabi comes to the rescue, finally acting on his suspicions regarding Hawks. After the hero evades an attack and makes to charge at Twice, Dabi calls out his real name, Keigo Takami, making him lose his composure for precious seconds. One might wonder why Hawks reacted that strongly to his name being spoken, but we have to remember this is also the first time the audience hears it. In fact, Hawks’ real name has remained a mystery to most in the My Hero Academia universe, and for good reason.
When Hawks was scouted by the Hero Public Safety Commission as a child and began his hero training, he had to say goodbye to his name. In a way, leaving behind his identity would allow Hawks to focus on the future and the arduous training he was about to endure for the sake of becoming a hero. For Hawks, erasing his name was also a way to sever ties with his parents, with whom he had a terrible relationship. Discarding his name as a kid means only the people who knew Hawks at the time knew his true identity, begging the question of how Dabi managed to find out.
How did Dabi find out Hawks’ name?
It turns out that following someone’s trail isn’t as difficult as one would have thought—at least, not if you’re Dabi. Being a villain, Dabi has no qualms about getting information out of people by force.
As explained in the manga chapter 299, Dabi managed to find Hawks’ home and sent some thugs there to gather information on the hero. Being met by Hawks’ mother, Tomie, was like striking gold for the villains, as they pried every detail from her with threats. Tomie told them everything about Hawks, including his name, and later left a letter to her son, explaining what happened before disappearing from the house.
This revelation will be animated in due time and is expected to be included in My Hero Academia‘s sixth season. Until then, you can stream new episodes every Saturday on Crunchyroll.