WARNING: The following contains spoilers for My Hero Academia Season 5, Episode 17, “The Hellish Todoroki Family,” now streaming on Funimation, Hulu and Crunchyroll.
Ever since enrolling in U.A. superhero school, Katsuki Bakugo has made it clear he isn't there to make friends. His stance may have softened slightly over time in My Hero Academia, but his abrasive personality wouldn't make him a top choice for anyone looking for a confidante. While Bakugo might not be the most tactful member of Class 1-A, he has and continues to show an emotionally intelligent side.
Season 5, Episode 17 of MHA sees dinner at the Todoroki home bring a little more drama than expected, with Natsuo's storming out putting a dampener on the evening's mood. Although Deku and Bakugo enjoy the meal, the evening becomes quite awkward after the older Todoroki brother leaves.
Being polite guests, Deku and Bakugo help the Todorokis clean up after dinner. It's in the process of ferrying dishes from the dining room to the kitchen that Bakugo divulges he knew about the Todoroki family's shady past. He had eavesdropped on Deku and Shoto's conversation about it during My Hero Academia's Sports Festival. In true Bakugo fashion, he blames his knowledge of the whole affair on the other two for speaking about sensitive matters while he was in earshot.
As soon as Deku and Bakugo finish their chat about this sensitive information, they walk right into another. Shoto and Fuyumi are reminiscing about their past and examining their current feelings toward their father, Endeavor. It's quite a tender moment -- until Bakugo bursts in.
He loudly chides the siblings for discussing private family matters while they have company, declaring his dinner was ruined. From the way he went on about the mapo tofu Fuyumi had prepared, it's obvious he enjoyed it but Bakugo has to keep up appearances. Even if he's being his usual brash self, he's concerned in his own way.
Whether by uncanny skill or pure luck, Bakugo has a knack for being in the right place at the right time to receive sensitive information, and here, he and Deku had heard most of the Todorokis' conversation. Had he really not cared about their emotions, he could have interrupted their very private moment while they were in the middle of sharing.
Bakugo's delicacy regarding the Todorokis’ situation proves he's not as anti-social as he might want everyone to believe. He's never shied away from using cruel nicknames and taunts on his classmates, but he also hasn't brought up Shoto's past since finding out months earlier. Even when he declared Shoto a rival, he never once used sensitive information to egg him on or make him use his Fire Quirk to fight.
Throughout My Hero Academia, he's also done a pretty good job of keeping Deku and All Might's secret. He claims he can't stand Deku, yet he's never threatened to leak the truth about One For All. Even though he tries to keep up the tough guy act and pretends not to care about anyone's feelings, Bakugo is a surprisingly considerate and trustworthy friend.
Bakugo has shown concern for the likes of Kirishima, Kaminari and Sero, his closest Class 1-A friends, on multiple occasions. He's proved he trusts them enough to let them support him and has given them tips on how they can get stronger themselves. Bakugo clearly cares about his closest friends but would hate for this to become public knowledge -- it'd ruin his brand.