A Flash to The Future - Naruto FanFic

Chapter 15 - Shikamaru

Shikaku Nara was an exceptionally smart man. The clan head was a person whose intellect had few equals and he himself knew that. Now while in the shinobi world, this often led to one becoming arrogant a feeling of invincibility. After all, knowledge is power. However, the jounin commander of the Leaf Shinobi Corps was nothing of the sort. Many had attributed that to being humble, but it was probably due to the fact that he couldn't really less about such things.

The man had risen through the ranks at an accelerated pace though no fault of his own, but rather through necessity. He was raised during a time of war and was forced to either become strong or die trying. And if there was anything that he had learned from his numerous years on the battlefield was that having trust in your comrades was absolutely necessary. It was a common principle that was driven in his head that camaraderie and teamwork was the bread and butter of Konoha's foundation.

However, the knife that spread that butter onto the bread was trust - something that was not present between the present children right now. Shikaku had to admit, he hadn't thought much of the blond before now. Of course, he'd see him out and about at times, but he just saw him as an ordinary kid that goofs off. Now, he could see that there was much more to him that met the eye.

He was aware of his status as an jinchuriki however his heritage was always unknown. They were told that the child had died that night and that Minato and Kushina didn't make it. Thinking about, he did have a striking resemblance of Minato. But the sharingan? How could Minato have been an Uchiha? Why would the Fourth keep it a secret?

At the Hokage's question, with an over exaggerated yawn and a forceful kick to the back of the chair, he forced his son out of his seat and onto the sealing matrix. He smirked at his son's grumbling as he straightened his jacket and dusting off his pants.

"Well will ya' look at that. Shikamaru wanted to go next," the scarred jonin drawled. His mother Yoshino was in the back, giving him a thumbs up.

Shikamaru was about to protest, but the look his father sent, ended any argument. Sighing and muttering something about 'troublesome parents' before making his way to the sealing matrix like a plague. He wasn't sure what he would see in his future and honestly, it both terrified and intrigued him. He had woken up this morning expecting that today's meeting would have been some sort of standard orientation into the life of a shinobi, yet in the span of a few hours, his whole life had been flipped upside down.

Probably some of the village's most top secret information had just been shown to and he was having a hard time processing it. Not only that, but the dobe of the class and the guy Shikamaru barely paid attention to unless he was talking about a way to sneak out of class was apparently on of the most strongest in their class. Based off what they had been shown, it was clear that Naruto was a lot more than he let on. From some of Naruto explanations and actions in the future, he could say that the blonde was practically a genius with intelligence that could probably rival his own.

He could see the awe on his father's face at some of Naruto political moves, reasonings, explanations, and logic he displayed in his older years. He also paid attention to Naruto's silence and refusal to meet anyone's gaze at many shocking moments. The fact that when a lot of secrets were revealed, Naruto was unfazed and poised, letting Shikamaru know that he knew more than he revealed and quietness further confirmed that he had no intentions of divulging certain information.

Learning such troublesome things could really mess with your perception of things.

Shikamaru would have liked to have said that the information didn't change things, but he himself knew that was not true. After today, he would probably never look at Naruto the same way. Hell, he wouldn't look at Sasuke the same. He could tell that the said Uchiha was going through the motions as well to. Though there were still questions that bugged him. Shikamaru was at the point were he didn't know what to think.