Nara Clan compound.
Located on a prosperous street in Konoha, ever since Konoha's founding it has been a driving force behind the Will of Fire, as well as its practitioner and inheritor.
No matter the era, it has always been the Ninja Clan that the Hokage line of Konoha relies on and trusts. Every Clan Leader also serves in the position of Jonin Squad Leader of Konoha.
Under the eaves in the rear veranda, a boy with a face very similar to Shikaku's walked over.
As soon as he came over, he scratched his head, looking completely unmotivated, and asked:
"Dad, you called me?"
"Yeah, I was just bored anyway. Come keep me company for a game of shogi."
The boy was Shikaku's son, named Nara Shikamaru.
Eight years old, still a student at the Ninja School.
His grades sat squarely in the middle; no matter how you looked at it, it didn't really seem like the sort of grades the son of the Nara Clan Leader ought to be getting.
The teachers had brought it up with Shikaku more than once, saying that if the kid could just show a bit more drive it'd be great. They always felt that every time he took a test, he treated it like he was just perfunctorily completing homework assigned by the school.
Shikaku merely smiled and let it pass, without being harsh on Shikamaru about it.
After all, the training he did at home was already quite intense, and the Ninja School only taught some basic things. As long as you had those things down by the time you graduated, it was enough, and he trusted in his son Shikamaru's ability.
It wasn't that he looked down on the Ninja School; it was just that, with that kind of curriculum, it was hard to cultivate truly outstanding talent.
Ninja Clans have their own training methods. The children of Ninja Clans should prioritize their family's Ninja Techniques, and simply use the Ninja School to polish their fundamentals. As long as their test scores weren't at the very bottom, causing a huge stir, there was no problem.
Shikamaru glanced at the shogi board set up in front of Shikaku, let out a rather bored sigh, and in the end still sat properly opposite Shikaku, lifting his head to meet Shikaku's gaze.
"I'm saying this first, I play shogi really slowly."
"That's fine. You're on break anyway; school doesn't start again until February next year, right?"
Shikaku said with a smile.
"Seriously… We're stopping at four at the latest. Chouji found a really good barbecue place and invited me to go with him. And there's that troublesome woman Ino."
Shikamaru said.
"I see. Going out to hang out with friends is fine too. Then I won't make dinner for you tonight. Hope you have fun out there."
Shikaku nodded, not objecting.
Chouji and Ino were children of the same age from the Akimichi Clan and Yamanaka Clan respectively, and were also his son Shikamaru's classmates.
The new generation of the Ino–Shika–Cho trio, future pillars who would shoulder the village's burdens. Shikaku was very much looking forward to the growth of the three.
"Speaking of which, how are those two kids, Naruto and Sasuke, in terms of interaction at school? What kind of impression do they give you?"
Shikaku asked with a purpose in mind as he played shogi with Shikamaru.
So it turns out it wasn't just to play shogi with me. What a drag. Shikamaru thought helplessly in his heart. He knew that when his old man asked him to play shogi, it was never just to kill time.
He didn't hide anything in response to Shikaku's question. Staring down at the board, he said softly, "Naruto looks kind of goofy, but his endurance is incredible and his stamina is really good. Sometimes he also gets these really smart ideas popping into his head. Should I say he's an idiot, or a genius? He's that subtle type that falls somewhere in between."
"Seems you rate him pretty highly."
Shikaku was rather surprised.
He knew very well what sort of reputation Uzumaki Naruto, son of the Fourth Hokage, had in the village. At school, he apparently also bore the shameful title of 'dead last'. Every time there was a Ninja Techniques exam, he ranked last, and many teachers had already given up on the kid.
Thinking back to the brilliant grades the Fourth Hokage had as a child, Shikaku had once wondered whether Uzumaki Naruto had really inherited his father's bloodline. The gap between the two father and son was indeed quite large.
Even if he was evaluated fairly well by his son Shikamaru, compared to his father he was still far behind.
However, astonishing endurance and stamina, and a very strong mental state—this didn't surprise Shikaku.
After all, Uzumaki blood flowed in him. In terms of Life Force, that clan's bloodline was like an unkillable cockroach, the most suitable sealing vessel for a Tailed Beast.
Konoha's three Nine-tailed Jinchuriki all possessed Uzumaki blood. That alone spoke to how powerful the Uzumaki bloodline was.
"We usually hang out together anyway. I was thinking, when we go for barbecue tonight, should we bring him along… But because of Sasuke, Ino seems to kind of dislike Naruto."
Shikamaru grumbled.
Because one was the dead last of the class and the other was the top student of the class, they were naturally at odds. Naruto had challenged Sasuke many times, and every time Sasuke had taken him down cleanly and neatly. But because of Naruto's behavior, he had drawn the ire of Sasuke's fan-club support group, and the Ino he mentioned was one of those support group members.
A vain, lovestruck woman.
"Take him along. Ino's just mouthing off. I trust Inoichi's upbringing; he wouldn't let her be on bad terms with her classmates."
That was the Fourth's kid, after all. Shikaku knew that when it came to teaching Ino, Inoichi understood where the line was.
Shikamaru nodded, neither saying yes nor no.
"As for Sasuke, he's the same as always. Ever since that incident… happened, he's like a block of ice. It's hard for anyone to get close to him, and who knows what he's thinking all day. He has an unusual obsession with power. If no one guides him properly, it could turn into a big problem."