The story of naruto goes into depressing territory frequently, with its protagonist often reflecting on his past, rejected by his village, with no friends in sight, and ridiculed for his dreams of becoming Hokage. As the series progresses, Naruto Uzumaki develops his abilities, defends his home and the world, and overcomes even his harshest critics to become Konoha’s beloved hero. But while Naruto amasses an incredible circle of friends throughout the series, his dedication to conquering Kurama and bringing Sasuke Uchiha back to the light pushes your true best friends, like Shikamaru Nara, behind Sasuke’s shadow.
Shikamaru is one of the many characters in naruto who repeatedly demonstrate their loyalty and admiration for the protagonist. Shikamaru’s contributions are possibly his most lasting and impactful, a sharp contrast to his original teenage desire to remain inconspicuous. In many ways, Naruto’s influence greatly benefited Shikamaru and vice versa. While Naruto’s heart of gold made it impossible to let Sasuke’s hatred and anger isolate him, that doesn’t excuse what a poor friend Sasuke was to him, with Shikamaru, among others, bringing a fundamental connection that not even Kurama could match.
Shikamaru Nara stood out as a friend and ally in almost all of Naruto’s main arcs
An underdog and an emerging model
Shikamaru begins the series being rejected by Naruto as one of the laziest ninjas of his generation, but he, among the rest of what became naruto famous Konoha Eleven, was recommended to participate in the Chunin Exams. Along with smaller moments like helping Ino protect Sakura in naruto Chapter #54, Shikamaru later begins to impress Naruto with his intelligence in his preliminary fight against Kin Tsuchi. Put naruto chapter #106, when the time comes for Shikamaru’s fight against Temari, where he would impress everyone with his brilliant tactics, Naruto is the first to cheer for Shikamaru as he enthusiastically pushes him into the ring.
But Shikamaru truly comes into his own after becoming a Chunin, taking on the arduous task of stopping Sasuke from defecting and defeating the Sound Four. It’s a bold move, and even with the help of the Sand Brothers, Naruto, Neji, Chōji, and Kiba , Sasuke escapes while many of the team are left in critical condition. Shikamaru is ironically the only one left with minor injuries, and his dedication to his friends, including Naruto, accelerates his survivor’s guilt. Still, after advice from his father, he vows not to let this happen again in chapter 235.
Sasuke, for his part, only reflects on his positive experiences with Naruto at the end of the series, with the faintest glimpses of recognizing Naruto as a rival, not a friend. As is painfully clear in naruto chapter #698, Naruto was a better friend than Sasuke deservedwith their bond being similar to Naruto rescuing his rebellious surrogate brother from wandering down a dark path. As for Kurama, whose presence with Naruto was tumultuous throughout much of the series, their friendship was born of circumstance and a developed kinship, with Kurama at various points going on destructive rampages possessing Naruto’s body.
Shikamaru was always obliged to be a loyal friend to Naruto
The slacker and the class clown
Shikamaru’s bond with Naruto doesn’t end after the Sasuke Retrieval Mission, with events in Part 2 often bringing them together in vital operations. Naruto tends to feel more comfortable with Shikamarujust as he is close to Sakura when he returns to Konoha. The two had compatible personalities, each avoiding responsibilities differently in their childhood, with Naruto being a prankster and Shikamaru being a slacker. However, as Naruto and Shikamaru matured into young adults, their friendship deepened as teammates and through the way they endured horrific trauma. Naruto.
Shikamaru would be the first to put this to the test when he mounted a joint effort between Team 10 and Team 7 to defeat Hidan and Kakuzu, avenging his mentor, Asuma Sarutobi. It would be a straightforward affair for fans to watch Shikamaru’s strict dedication to preventing a loss like the Sasuke Recovery Mission and a powerful demonstration of your leadership skills. He isolates Hidan from Kakuzu, creating one of the best fights of all time. narutoand entrusting him to Naruto and his teammates is a significant show of trust, but still a more subtle example of Shikamaru’s friendship.
The strongest case that preceded the Fourth Great Ninja War Arc was easily when Shikamaru was the last character to pull Naruto out of his pit of despair after losing Jiraiya in naruto chapter #406. Shikamaru appeals to the mutual loss of their teachers, along with how Shikamaru learned that he would be tasked with being Asuma’s son’s teacher to remind Naruto that they are growing up and need to prepare to usher in future generations. Shikamaru then says that each of them needs to become cool shinobi like their mentors, which is a beautiful, understated moment in their friendship, finally making Naruto smile.
Thinking about another of Naruto’s best friends
A vital mention of another important ally of the protagonist
While Shikamaru is a fascinating candidate for Naruto’s best friend, Sakura Haruno is one of the strongest alternative options that many can reasonably accept. Not to mention his growing admiration for Naruto is ignore one of the series’ healthiest friendshipswith their bond being a major affair of deep platonic love, ultimately without romantic involvement. Sakura began to see Naruto as a worthy ally in the Chunin Exams Arc, begged and depended on him to bring Sasuke home in Part 2, and fought relentlessly alongside him throughout the series.
Sakura’s friendship with Naruto becomes less prominent throughout the epilogue and Boruto. Still, her defense of her friend never disappears. She desperately asks him to save Konoha in Pain’s Assault and emotionally hugs him when he succeeds. Boruto readers won’t see this dynamic as much; instead, they will primarily see how Naruto and Shikamaru continue to cooperate closely during the present. However, naruto fans will always know how indispensable Sakura is to Naruto.
Shikamaru shared Naruto’s responsibilities as advisor to the Hokage
A sense of purpose is born
Considering Shikamaru’s long-held desire to live and die a normal life, devoid of serious responsibilities in naruto chapter #119, It’s clear that his friendship with Naruto has caused a significant change. At the height of the Fourth Great Ninja War Arc, with Shikamaru on the brink of death, he remembers when he told his father, Shikaku, that Naruto had a bright future ahead of him. In chapter #659, Shikamaru even comments that Naruto, unlike Hashirama Senju, “does not have an adept brother like Lord Second to be his advisor”. He sets a lofty goal as being Naruto’s right-hand man.
When I’m with Naruto… he makes me want to walk with him, by his side.
-Shikamaru Nara
Shikamaru did just that, meaning the cloud-envious boy who wished he had the fewest responsibilities would soon strive to have one of the hardest jobs in his village because he believed no one else was fit for it. At this point, Shikamaru not only asserts himself as Naruto’s best ally outside of anyone in the village, but their friendship motivates him to recover rather than die at this point. In many ways, Shikamaru was the best friend Naruto could have because, despite his lazy origins, he did his best every moment when the cards fell. Naruto.