Character relationships are at the very heart and soul ofMy Hero Academia,which is a big reason why the series has absolutely boomed in popularity, in addition to its stellar action sequences. After all, it's the mentor-student relationship that Deku forms with All Might that gives him the power and motivation to truly take steps toward achieving his dreams, and the friendships he makes while at U.A. that help him break out of his shell.
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Out of everyone that he meets over the course of his time at U.A, one of his sweetest and closest friends has to be Ochaco Uraraka. Both of them aspire to become a hero so that they can help others, and they have similarly pure hearts that allow them to bond with and confide in each other without being concerned about them reacting negatively.
10 Deku Inspires Uraraka To Focus On Her Pro Hero Aspirations And Strive Toward Them Wholeheartedly
When Uraraka first begins to realize that her friendship with Deku actually ended up spawning feelings of a more romantic sort, it frazzles her. She starts becoming increasingly flustered and awkward around him, and even runs away when he suggests the two shop together while at the mall.
Of course, things don't stay this way forever, and she realizes that confessing to him would distract him from his goals, something she doesn't want to do. Instead, she cheers him on and follows his example, chasing her own Pro Hero dreams with newfound ferocity.
9 Uraraka Saves Deku Upon Their Very First Meeting Despite Not Knowing Him
On his way to the U.A. Entrance Exam, Deku is so lost in his own thoughts that he isn't paying attention to where he's stepping and ends up tripping. Before he can fully fall, though, Uraraka levitates him with her Quirk and wishes him good luck before taking off.
Though this is an incredibly brief interaction, it's one that solidifies Uraraka's character in a great way. It shows that she's someone selfless who will help others even if she doesn't know them personally, a trait which she shares with the protagonist.
8 Uraraka Helps Deku Find Power In His Old Childhood Nickname
Back when Izuku is still a child, Bakugo comes up with the nickname 'Deku' for him, as its characters can be read to mean a weak or useless person. This is something that weighs heavily on him, and the name is used to make him feel small and powerless.
That is until Uraraka calls him Deku thinking it's his actual name, and even after it's explained to her, she says that she thinks it's cute and reminds her of a can-do attitude. He immediately comes around to the idea, and later decides to reclaim it and state proudly that Deku is the name of a hero.
7 They Mutually Aid Each Other At The End Of The Entrance Exam
At the end of the entrance exam, Deku realizes that he's yet to score any points. His chance arises to attack one of the robots for points, but he realizes that Uraraka's trapped under a pile of rubble, so he sacrifices that chance to instead push her out of harm's way.
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Afterwards, he's in danger of falling and can't land properly due to having injured himself while using his Quirk. Uraraka then comes to his aid by helping float him to the ground to prevent him from being injured. They both do this out of the kindness of their hearts, which ends up earning the pair rescue points to help them pass the exam overall.
6 Uraraka Is Willing To Sacrifice Her Entrance Exam Points So That Deku Can Pass
Deku saves Uraraka at the end of the entrance exam rather than take advantage of his last opportunity to score points, and this is something that doesn't go unnoticed by Uraraka. She approaches All Might and the others and actually requests that some of her points be given to him instead.
She doesn't seem at all concerned as to whether or not that would leave her unable to pass, and is instead only concerned for his sake. And although he doesn't end up needing them - as he secretly earned rescue points for his heroic actions - it's still an incredibly heartwarming gesture.
5 Uraraka Recognizes Deku As A Brilliant Strategist But Still Tries To Attain Victory By Herself
During the tournament arc of the Sports Festival, Uraraka is matched against Bakugo in what seems like an impossible matchup given his brute strength. She's understandably nervous, and Deku wants to repay her for everything she's done for him, so he formulates a battle strategy using everything he knows about both of their Quirks.
Uraraka doesn't even take a look at it, however, and denies his assistance. She statesthat the two of them are rivals in this competition, even if they're friends, and that she wants to win by her own merit if anything. This shows that she doesn't feel like she always needs to lean on Deku to win, which is a bad trope that many shonen female leads fall into.
4 Uraraka Hugs Deku To Calm His Out-Of-Control Quirk Down Despite The Danger To Herself
Blackwhip is an incredibly powerful part of Deku's Quirk that he inherits through one of One For All's previous users. However, it's also incredibly dangerous, as it's powered by emotions and primarily through anger.
It becomes stronger the angrier Deku is, but it also becomes more unstable to match, to the point where it's possible for him to lose control completely over said power. Without any consideration to what might happen to her, Uraraka leaps in to hug Deku in the hopes of calming him down in an incredibly heart-wrenching moment.
3 Deku Defends Uraraka When Bakugo Implies It's His Fault She Made Such An Irritating Opponent To Fight
After Bakugo's match against Uraraka during the Sports Festival, he can be seen confronting Deku. He angrily berates the other for giving Uraraka such an irritating strategy to use in her fight against him.
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While Deku typically shows some hesitation in his interactions with Bakugo, he confidently lashes back in order to defend Uraraka and tells him that he's wrong. She rejected Deku's strategy and came up with one all by herself,and Deku insists that if Bakugo had a tough time against her, it was due to nothing but Uraraka's own merit, something which causes Bakugo to actually show a bit of respect towards her.
2 Uraraka Initially Appears Jealous At Deku's Interactions With Other Girls But Manages To Work Through Those Feelings
It's completely natural to feel jealousy whenever one sees their crush interacting closely with others, even if they're otherwise a kind and even self-sacrificial person. In Uraraka's case, she's shown to become jealous when Deku interacts closely with the likes of Mei Hatsume and Melissa Shield.
However, it's what one then does with those feelings that shows their true character, and Uraraka again proves that she has a heart of gold. When she takes the time to get to talk to and understand the kind of person Melissa is, she's shown to grow past her jealous feelings, showing a deep level of maturity.
1 Deku Trusts Uraraka Enough To Reveal The Nature Of His Quirk And The Target On His Back
When Deku makes the decision to leave U.A. High to prioritize the safety of his classmates, he sends them personalized letters. The letter he writes to Uraraka goes into detail about the nature of his Quirk and how he obtained it, and how All For One and Shigaraki were after him.
This is incredibly heavy information, and it's something that Deku wouldn't have been able to share if he didn't trust Uraraka completely. Uraraka is then later able to make a speech to the general public to ease their misgivings about him returning to U.A. to great success.
NEXT: My Hero Academia: 10 Lessons Deku Learned From Fighting Villains
