My Hero Academia is a classic shonen tale, complete with themes of never giving up on one's dreams, intense rivalries and striving to always be better than before (Plus Ultra). These themes are often captured in its protagonist, Izuku Midoriya, and even side characters such as Eijiro Kirishima and Mina Ashido. Shoto Todoroki, however, is getting short-changed.
It's true that Shoto has some fearsome rivals to face -- mainly Izuku and Katsuki Bakugo -- but this three-way rivalry is threatening to get a bit messy while the characters intern with Endeavor in the anime, diluting the specialness of the Izuku-vs-Bakugo rivalry. In fact, Shoto once had a perfectly fine rival to call his own, Inasa Yoarashi, but the narrative has since abandoned that idea, and it's a real waste.
Shoto Todoroki & Inasa Yoarashi's Fierce Rivalry
Up to a point, Shoto's character arc in My Hero Academia was partly defined by his rivalry with the highly gifted and gung-ho Inasa Yoarashi, who has a wind-based Quirk named Whirlwind. During this flashback, it's revealed that the two boys met when they both took part in a practical tryout test for the U.A. It became clear that while Shoto and Inasa were both gifted, they had very different personalities and outlooks on life.
At the time, Shoto was still bitter and defiant toward his father, and this made him self-absorbed and callous to others (and he wasn't using his fire abilities). Inasa, by contrast, was a highly enthusiastic, friendly and optimistic person, eager to test himself against the talented Shoto Todoroki.
The rivalry was largely one-sided, though, since Shoto felt no need to compare himself to Inasa or other trainee students, and he coldly turned away Inasa when the latter made overtures to him after the test. Inasa took offense to that, to the point that he actually gave up on U.A. and ended up enrolling in another elite heroics school, Shiketsu. If Shoto had returned Inasa's friendly rivalry, then Inasa would have ended up in U.A.'s Class 1-A for sure, which would have been fascinating to see.
Later in the series, Shoto and Inasa met again during the provisional hero license exam and clashed while fighting Gang Orca and his minions during the test's final phase. The two of them teamed up to create hot winds that greatly weakened Gang Orca, but it was too little, too late, and both boys failed the overall test. Humbled, they could have been put on the road to recovery together. But their story ended there.
Inasa Could Have Drawn Out The Best In Shoto, & Vice Versa
Shoto and Inasa Yoarashi were connected by their feud, as well as their shared experience during the remedial course with Bakugo and Camie, but that's not all. In particular, Inasa once looked up to Shoto's father Endeavor before seeing Endeavor's rough side and losing faith in the fire hero. However, Inasa later saw Shoto speaking to his father on somewhat better terms, noting that the anger in Endeavor's eyes had been replaced with something slightly gentler and more genuine. Inasa was inspired by that. He didn't say much to Shoto or Endeavor after this, but it's possible that Inasa may now see Endeavor as his role model once again, and he could have gotten closer to Endeavor through Shoto.
Thus, if Inasa had persisted in his rivalry with Shoto and became friends with him, Inasa could have proven his worth to Endeavor through Shoto. This could have given Inasa far more drive to become a truly worthy (and hot-blooded) Pro Hero. As things currently stand in My Hero Academia, Inasa seems to have relatively little inspiration to work with, aside from his naturally enthusiastic personality. He needs more than that; competing with the Todoroki family would have pushed him further and given him a chance to see Endeavor's better side.
Meanwhile, Shoto could have benefitted from this rivalry by having a truly worthy equal who no longer bears any resentment toward him. While Inasa arguably has a much healthier attitude and personality than Katsuki Bakugo, he's still highly competitive. Besides, Bakugo already has Izuku as his #1 rival, competing with the power of One For All. It's true that Bakugo once told Shoto "I'm going to surpass you" to his face, but really, Bakugo ought to (and usually does) save those feelings for Izuku, and give Shoto room to have another rival all on his own, keeping things neat and clear in My Hero Academia's web of relationships.
Shoto doesn't have to -- nor want to, generally -- spend all his time with his father, Izuku or Bakugo. He could have instead explored fresh ground with the loud but friendly Inasa, and a new side of himself in the process. Inasa is also too powerful and fascinating a character to just drop from the narrative like that. Perhaps it's time to bring him back and have him and Shoto show each other how far they have each come.
