The success of Uraraka's character arc in My Hero Academia hinges on Toga's survival, and it's clear why

With the My Hero Academia epilogue currently focusing on wrapping up the story and providing closure to each and every character, fans have been looking forward to witnessing how Kohei Horikoshi handles the conclusion of Ochako Uraraka's character arc, and to provide a definitive update about Himiko Toga's status.

Ochako Uraraka and Himiko Toga have had a captivating dynamic ever since the Paranormal Liberation War arc, as the chemistry between the two led the fans to long for more interactions between them. Their story seemingly came to a heartbreaking conclusion in the Final War arc, which saw Toga willingly sacrificing herself in order to save Uraraka's life.

Although Toga isn't confirmed to have died as of yet, some fans believe that in order for Uraraka's character to come full circle, it is an absolute necessity that Toga lives to see another day.

My Hero Academia: How Toga's ultimate fate could decide the conclusion of Uraraka's character arc

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It may not seem like it at first glance, but Ochako Uraraka has one of the most interesting character arcs in the entirety of My Hero Academia. Although her motivation to become a Hero in order to save people and help her parents with their financial struggles made her a beloved and relatable character, what truly made fans invested in her was her rivalry with Himiko Toga.

Although their rivalry did come to an end in the Final War arc, with Toga choosing to save Uraraka from certain death by sacrificing herself, it still hasn't been made clear whether Toga is actually gone for good.

While it's certain that her fate will ultimately be revealed in the upcoming chapters, a fan with the username @TheBoiBubba on the social media platform X believes that killing Toga off would not be a wise decision from a storytelling standpoint since the success of Uraraka's character arc depends entirely on Toga's survival.

Uraraka as seen in My Hero Academia (image via Bones)

Ochako Uraraka is one of the first characters to be introduced in the world of My Hero Academia. However, it wasn't until the Overhaul arc that Uraraka's true goals were brought to light. Her "inciting incident" takes place in this arc, when she is tasked with taking an injured Sir Nighteye to safety.

Although Nighteye eventually ended up dying as a result of his injuries, Uraraka felt some sort of responsibility for failing to save his life. When Aizawa advised her that she should take this experience in order to figure out what she wanted to achieve in life, Uraraka replied that she wanted to save people.

She used her failure to save Sir Nighteye as a moment to grow and become better, as she had promised herself not to let it happen again. Later in the Joint Training arc, Uraraka's resolve was made even more clear, as she no longer wished to be bound to the sidelines feeling powerless, due to which she rushed out to save Deku, who at the time was hurting others and himself with his out-of-control powers.

It is also during this arc that fans are given the opportunity to focus on Uraraka's feeling of powerlessness, which is an aspect of her that found its roots in her childhood. Throughout her childhood, she felt useless to help her parents in their struggles with poverty, in spite of her powers.

Himiko Toga as seen in My Hero Academia (image via Bones)

At this point, one can clearly see the relevance of the two most crucial failures of Uraraka's life: being unable to help her overworked parents with their struggles with money and being unable to save Sir Nighteye's life. In a way, these two events paved the way for her ultimate goal, which was to save Himiko Toga both physically and emotionally.

However, if Toga is confirmed to be dead in the upcoming chapters of the My Hero Academia manga, it would mean that Uraraka would have failed to achieve her most important goal. If this ends up happening, then history would repeat itself for the latter, as apart from Sir Nighteye, she would have let another person die in her arms once again.

That said, this time would be much worse for her character, since it would mean that she not only failed to save someone but also that that someone died saving Uraraka's life instead. As some may agree, this, in no way, would be a satisfying conclusion for Uraraka's character.

This is because Ochako Uraraka is a character whose entire arc was built upon the idea of failure. If the growth from that failure concludes with the same failure it began with, it would mean that Uraraka's entire character arc has been pointless.

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A similar comparison could be made with Katsuki Bakugo, whose "inciting incident" began with his realization that he may have been the reason behind the end of All Might's life as a Hero. However, Bakugo ended up redeeming himself when he saved All Might from the clutches of death at the hands of All For One.

In Uraraka's case, however, there would be no such satisfying character conclusion or redemption if Toga ends up dying. As fans may agree, all of Uraraka's failures, trauma, and growth should come to fruition in the ongoing epilogue, which would only be possible if she was somehow successful in overcoming her past failures and saving Toga's life.

If Toga is confirmed to have died in the upcoming chapters, then all of Uraraka's frustrations about her powerlessness and promises to do better would have been all for naught, since she would have been once again helpless to save someone so instrumental to her character arc.

Thereby, it can be concluded that Himiko Toga needs to be alive in My Hero Academia's epilogue so that Ochako Uraraka can finally escape her cycle of failure and get proper closure for her character.