Naruto: I am Nara Shikamaru

Chapter 16: Betrothed to Hinata



When Shikamaru arrived at the Hokage's office, besides the Third Hokage, he was surprised to also see the head of the Hyuga clan, Hiashi Hyuga. Hiashi's eyes brightened as soon as he noticed Shikamaru.

"Hokage-sama!" Shikamaru greeted, but he didn't acknowledge Hiashi since he had never met him before.

"Heh heh! It's Shikamaru." the Third Hokage said kindly with a warm smile. "Do you know why I called you here?"

"No, Hokage-sama." Shikamaru replied, feeling a little confused. Was he caught sneaking back? He felt a sudden nervousness.

"Heh, don't worry. This time it's good news." the Third Hokage reassured him, noticing Shikamaru's tension.

He glanced at Hiashi, who gave a slight smile and nodded, signaling the Hokage to continue.

"Here's the thing, this gentleman in front of you is Hiashi Hyuga, head of the Hyuga clan." the Third Hokage introduced.

"Hello, Lord Hiashi Hyuga." Shikamaru said, pretending to be meeting him for the first time.

"No need for formalities." Hiashi replied with a nod.

"Well, Shikamaru, the Hyuga clan wants to arrange a marriage between you and Hinata Hyuga. What do you think?" the Hokage finally revealed the reason for the summons.

"Ah…" Shikamaru was startled, then his mind quickly raced. Nothing in this world comes for free, there must be a catch. Of course, it had to do with Tai Chi…

"What are the conditions?" Shikamaru asked calmly. Honestly, if he could also win over Hinata, that would be pretty great. He couldn't help but picture Hinata's shy face.

"Well…" Hiashi quickly spoke up, eyes hopeful. "We'd like you to teach us your Shadow Tai Chi technique."

"Just as I thought." Shikamaru thought silently. When Hiashi hesitated, he pressed on, "Is that the only condition?"

"Well… we also want you to promise not to teach that technique to anyone else." Hiashi said a bit awkwardly.

"Alright, I agree." Shikamaru said straightforwardly. "But I have one condition too."

He understood how much his Shadow Tai Chi would impact the Hyuga clan. Tai Chi was enough to counter their Gentle Fist style, leaving their Byakugan and Gentle Fist as their only trump cards. Hiashi's request was reasonable.

"What's your condition? Tell me!" Hiashi asked excitedly, already envisioning the Hyuga clan's resurgence.

"I haven't thought of it yet. I'll let you know later." Shikamaru replied, essentially asking the Hyuga clan for a promise.

"That's acceptable. We'll do everything in our power to fulfill your request." Hiashi agreed.

"Good. When should I teach you?" Shikamaru asked.

"Right here and now! I want to see it again!" the Third Hokage said.

So, in front of the Hokage and Hiashi, Shikamaru demonstrated Shadow Tai Chi. Hiashi's eyes lit up as he saw it firsthand. With Shikamaru's explanation, he quickly mastered the technique, and with Hiashi's input, they improved its power, making it both defensive and offensive, unlike Shikamaru's version which was mainly defensive. This explained why the Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist and Tai Chi styles were so similar. From that day on, the Hyuga clan gained a powerful new technique, making their combination of Gentle Fist and Tai Chi almost unstoppable. The Third Hokage himself found it impossible to defeat Hiashi in taijutsu, though of course, that was limited to physical combat.

"Shikamaru, do you want to marry Hinata now or…" Hiashi asked with a beaming smile after mastering Tai Chi.

"Wait a bit. I want to know Hinata's feelings first." Shikamaru replied. In the original story, Hinata likes Naruto, and Shikamaru didn't want to bind her just by a political engagement.

"Yeah, that's wise. You're still young." Hiashi nodded. Then he took out a small token from his pocket.

"This is something Hinata has worn since she was a child. Consider it a symbol for now." he said.

Shikamaru took it, a small, exquisite piece of black jade, which he immediately liked. Moreover, it was something Hinata had treasured since childhood. After putting it on, he took from his ninja tools bag a scroll, the Shadow Tai Chi jutsu scroll.

"I don't need much else. Consider this my token." Shikamaru said.

Soon after, Hiashi took his leave, while the Third Hokage stayed behind with Shikamaru. With this, Shikamaru and Hinata were considered formally betrothed, the Hokage acting as their witness.

After Hiashi left, the Third Hokage looked at Shikamaru meaningfully.

"Shikamaru, you truly are a genius…"

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A/N: If you're enjoying the story, you can read up to Chapter 45 (28+ chapters ahead of the current one) on my Patreon: patreon.com/vynthor


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