Shikadai Nara

is a chūnin of Konohagakure, and the heir to the Nara clan. As a member of Team 10 with his team-mates Chōchō Akimichi and Inojin Yamanaka, he forms the seventeenth generation of the Ino–Shika–Chō trio.

Background
Shikadai is the only child of Shikamaru and Temari Nara. Shortly after his birth, Shikamaru took notice of Shikadai's cry and suggested that the infant would be better off exploring the world with his friends. From a young age, Shikadai would often have sleepovers wih Inojin and Chōchō, even having matching pyjamas. Their parents would also continue Asuma Sarutobi's tradition of taking the kids to Yakiniku Q to celebrate accomplishments. Being acquainted with Mirai Sarutobi since his birth, the two developed a sibling-like relationship during their training under his father. He would also regularly be practiced on by her for her genjutsu. As his parents continued to stay close to their childhood friends over the years, Shikadai ultimately came to know the various parents' respective kids well, but grew especially close to Boruto Uzumaki. On the day of the Seventh Hokage's inauguration, he watched the ceremony beside Inojin.

Personality
Shikadai takes after his father, Shikamaru, in several ways, possessing a similar relaxed, unenthusiastic personality. He finds participating in activities to be very tiresome and is quick to shirk out of them as seen when he rejected an invitation from Inojin to train after school. Also like his father, he tends to say "complete" when successfully performing a technique or battle plan.

Stemming from his lax nature, he also isn't one to properly respect rank, greeting his uncle — the Kazekage — plainly before flatly asking for his other uncle Kankurō. He also showed himself to be blunt and outspoken like his mother, telling Boruto Uzumaki that pursuing a prank during the Five Kage Summit was stupid. At the same time, he cares very much about his clan, not wanting to let down it or his family in not living up to its reputation.

Shikadai is referred to as a gamer and seems to have a strong moral code. For instance, he was personally offended when Boruto revealed he was cheating in the video game the two play with Inojin. He also gave up against Boruto, who he did not know was cheating at the time, in their Chūnin Exam fight because he felt that as a gamer, one should understand when to give up to fight another day when the odds are overwhelmingly against you. He also has a fierce rivalry with Boruto. At the same time, he appears to be rather close to him, accepting Hinata's request to watch out for her son, implying he is also close to Hinata.

Appearance
Shikadai bears a strong resemblance to his father and paternal grandfather. He has black-coloured, spiky hair, tied up in a ponytail, and his mother's teal-coloured eyes. Unlike his father, Shikadai has sharper facial expressions — a trait he most likely inherited from Temari. Shikadai's outfit consists of a cream-coloured zipped-up jacket with a rudimentary Nara clan symbol on the back, blue trousers and standard shinobi sandals. He wears his forehead protector wrapped around one of his sleeves. As customary of his clan, both of his ears are pierced by grey stud earrings. In the Boruto: Naruto Next Generations manga, similar to Boruto, Shikadai also wears a black rubber band around his left wrist.

In his Academy days, Shikadai's outfit consisted of a white shirt, a green jacket with yellow sleeves and collar, over it blue pants, and regular shinobi sandals.

Abilities
Shikadai has been hailed as a prodigy amongst the Nara clan, having inherited his father's intellect and possessing the Kazekage bloodline. Since early childhood, his training was supervised by his parents and Mirai, with the goal to pass on their techniques to Shikadai. This included being drilled on how to release genjutsu. During the Chūnin Exams, he was able to defeat Sunagakure's top genin Yodo, and was considered well-above the level of Kumo-elite genin Yurui. Ultimately, his talents led to him being the first of his graduating class to become a chūnin, personally selected by the Seventh Hokage himself.

Intelligence
Like both his parents, Shikadai is a natural strategist and tactician, constantly taking a methodical and analytical approach to battle to stay steps ahead of the opponent. He excels at reading his opponent's tactics and battle patterns to anticipate how they will act, letting him seamlessly device a proper countermeasure. During his fight against Boruto, Shikadai said he had at least 12 countermeasures in place if Boruto had used the Rasengan.

Ninjutsu
Being trained regularly by his parents even before joining the Academy, Shikadai is a capable shurikenjutsu practitioner, being able to easily hit the bulls-eye repeatedly. He is also proficient in Wind Release, able to use his mother's signature Sickle Weasel Technique. However, for more advance techniques, he requires his mother's fan, which he is still limited at and tires him quickly. As a member of his generation's Ino–Shika–Chō, Shikadai is learning cooperation ninjutsu techniques with Inojin and Chōchō, synchronising their respective hiden techniques. In the anime, he can also effectively perform fūinjutsu, able to restrict a person's movements and expand the might of this alongside fellow users.

Nara Clan Techniques
As a member of the Nara clan, Shikadai is a capable of manipulating his shadow in various ways. By using the Shadow Imitation Technique to connect his own shadow with his target's, he can force them to mimic his own movements or restrict their movements entirely. His skill with the technique allows him to greatly expand its range to capture multiple targets simultaneously before they can react.

Academy Entrance Arc
In the anime, after attending the Academy's entrance exam, Shikadai was placed in Shino Aburame's homeroom. Two weeks later, he warned Boruto not to get into more trouble, thinking Boruto would get suspended again for skipping class to fight Iwabee Yuino. Later, during their shurikenjutsu training, Boruto caused a ruckus, leading to Shikadai and others being punished with repairing the Hokage Rock. The following day, Shikadai, Boruto and Inojin found Metal Lee unusually aggressive, which resulted in him attacking the group. After devising a plan to subdue Metal, the group managed to free him from being possessed. After learning about the Summoning Technique, Shino had the boy and girl students of his class compete against each other in a race to capture a flag on top the Academy first. During the climax of the competition, Boruto managed to summon Nue, which launched Chōchō off the Academy's roof, leading to Shikadai and Boruto rescuing her. After the beast was subdued by Konohamaru Sarutobi, the competition was won by the girls.

Later, as a former Academy student rampaged through Konoha, Shikadai alongside Iwabee and Boruto took it upon themselves to subdue him. Before they could, they discovered that a mysterious boy defeated him. The next day, Mitsuki enrolled into Shikadai's class, leading to the entire class partaking in a party to welcome him the next day. Afterwards, as a possessed repairman went on a rampage at the Academy, Shikadai and other classmates decided to handle the matter, leading to the group freeing him of being manipulated. The next day, Shino had the trouble makers of his class partake in an extracurricular class, leading to him having Shikadai, Mitsuki and Boruto meet him outside a forest in the village. Upon arriving, they learned that Shino was possessed, forcing the students to flee from his assault of them. Developing a plan to combat Shino, Shikadai and Boruto acted as distraction while Mitsuki submerged and electrocuted their teacher in a lake, which freed him. Afterwards, as Shino voiced his decision to resign as teacher, the students convinced him to reconsider, apologising for their earlier statements.

Later, growing concerned about this repeated and seemingly random attacks, Boruto and Shikadai tried to figure out the source behind them and why apparently only Boruto could see it. The following day, Shikadai and other students dedided to protect Sumire Kakei from Magire Kakuremino, after he left her a stalkerish message. Following a possessed Magire abducting Sumire, Shikadai and Boruto engaged in a fight against the culprit, which ended after Chōchō freed him of his possession. Later, Shikadai, Boruto, and Mitsuki decided to ditch classes one day, having Mitsuki write fake parent notes for them. When he was caught out, Temari punished him. Shino then has his class pick a place to spend their workplace field trip at, leading to the three picking the Konohagakure's Central Post Office. While sorting stamps, they heard on the news that another attack happened at the water purification plant, where Sumire was, leading to the three rushing to the hospital.After learning that Sumire was okay, Shikadai and his friends were approached by Naruto, who warned them about the danger of their investigation.

Continuing their investigation, the three got help from others students in facing the culprit behind the incidents. After they lured the person out and Komame became possessed, half the team dealt with the culprit while Shikadai's squad faced Komame. While having saved the post chief, the culprit ultimately got away. During the night Nue attacked the village, Shikadai wondered where Boruto and Sumire were. The following morning, they found Boruto, Sumire and Mitsuki in a field. Sai Yamanaka and his group of shinobi arrived to the scene, leading to him apprehending Sumire for her role in the attacks. Several weeks later, Shakadai's class took part in a training exercise, during which the Ino–Shika–Chō faced Metal, Mitsuki and Boruto in a game of capture the flag, which resulted in their team losing. Afterwards, Sumire returned to class, leading to all the students welcoming her back.

Sarada Uchiha Arc
After class at the Academy was dismissed, Shikadai warned Boruto not to pursue his prank because of the five Kage meeting. Upon arriving home, he told his mother to tell Ino that his stomach was hurting, simply to get out of having to train, and greeted his uncle Gaara casually, earning a reprimand from his mother, but shrugged it off and asked for his other uncle Kankurō instead.

Upon hearing that he and the rest of the class will be going through graduation exams in a week, Shikadai found little interest in the idea. Later, after training with Shikamaru in the anime, he accompanied his father in stopping Boruto from interrupting the Seventh Hokage from his duties, and to his chagrin, was asked by his father to notify Naruto's shadow clone where Boruto was.

School Trip Arc
In the anime, Shikadai took part in a class field trip to Kirigakure. Upon arriving, Kagura Karatachi escorted them through the village and took them to meet the Sixth Mizukage in his office, where Chōjūrō gave them a speech. That night, Shikadai and his classmates revived a message that informed them Denki Kaminarimon had been kidnapped and to meet the culprits at the pier. Upon arriving, the perpetrator was revealed to be Tsurushi Hachiya and his gang of delinquents. Attacking the students, they managed to easily defeat the shinobi. Afterwards, they invited Kagura to play a card game with them. When Boruto and Sarada acted strangely, Shikadai and Inojin decided to follow them. To their surprise, the instead found Mitsuki talking secretly with Suigetsu Hōzuki. Trying to make sense of their conversation, Suigetsu approached and threatened the pair, leading to them nervously agreeing to help Mitsuki. Sometime afterwards, the class returned to Konoha.

Graduation Exams Arc
In the anime, taking up Shino's subtle offer to try stealing the test answers for the written portion of the Genin Exams, Inojin and his friends were able to pass the test. The next day, the students for set against Academy teachers and Kakashi Hatake during the twenty four hour practical portion of the exams. While the teachers would still evaluate the students' respective improvements, their true test was against the Hokage. As the test began, the Ino–Shika–Chō trio fought Anko Mitarashi alongside other students, which resulted in them all being defeated and captured. During the night, his classmates rescued the restrained students after they defeated Anko. Strategising, all the students transformed into copies of Boruto and attacked Kakashi, during which they got into position to restrain him so Boruto could grab his bell. During their struggle, the exam reached its time limit. Despite not getting the bell, Kakashi chose to pass everyone as they succeeded in the test's true goal; team-work and loyalty. Having become a genin, the Ino–Shika–Chō trio was placed on Team 10 under Moegi Kazamatsuri's leadership.

Genin Mission Arc
In the anime, the Seventh Hokage personally assigned Team 10 their first mission, which involved chauffeuring around a client. During the mission, Shikadai and Inojin carried the clients shopping while she chattered with Chōchō throughout Konoha. Later, Team 10 was tasked with another mission which involved clearing rocks off the Thunder Rail.

Byakuya Gang Arc
In the anime, Shikadai began getting taught more advanced tactics in shōgi by his father to sharpen his mind. During his studies, Shikadai learned about the Byakuya Gang who stole a collection of jewels from Konoha Bank. Hearing about how they call themselves noble thieves because they steal riches to support the poor, Shikadai acknowledged that while stealing is wrong, the world is not always so clear-cut on right and wrong. Later, he was approached by a boy named Ryōgi, who took an interest in playing shōgi with him. As the boy proved skilled in the game, they played well into dusk. After the gang committed multiple robberies, Team 10 was assigned alongside other genin teams to assist in their capture, though they were instructed not to engage them in battle. While playing with Ryōgi again, Boruto approached the pair, leading to them discussing the Ninjutsu Research Centre which Ryōgi was interested in before he departed. Continuing talking with Boruto, they encountered a Byakuya Gang thief that was being chased by Temari. She instructed the pair to assist her in apprehending the criminal, though Shikadai hesitated, which resulted in the thief escaping.

A while later, while practising shōgi alone, Ryōgi met up to him, leading to the pair playing against each other. Having won the match, Shikadai asked him if he was part of the Byakuya Gang, leading to Ryōgi denying Shikadai's assumption. Asking for proof, Shikadai told Ryōgi's that his lamp was listed as stolen by the gang, which lead to Ryōgi panicking and falling for Shikadai's lie that outed him. Unable to change Ryōgi's mindset, the thief flees. After the gang manipulated villagers into believing the Kaminarimon Company conducted corrupt practices, it lead to the same genin teams to placate protesters around the company's headquarters. While observing the structure of the protest, Shikadai noticed it was similar to the strategy Ryōgi used in shōgi, leading to his team abandoning their position and heading to the Ninjutsu Research Centre, as he thought the protest was a distraction while the gang robbed the the centre. Joined by Boruto, the shinobi found Katasuke Tōno robbed of his Scientific Ninja Tool, during which the scientist gave them a way to track the thieves.

Having located them, Shikadai and Boruto chased after Ryōgi and Gekkō, while Inojin and Chōchō handled the remaining members. After the thieves jumped on a Thunder Train, the pair followed them aboard. There, the genin were encased in a dome of ice, during which Boruto fell under genjutsu and attacked Shikadai. Restraining him, Shikadai released the genjutsu and confronted Ryōgi, who was now being controlled by Gekkō's genjutsu. Unable to talk sense into him, Boruto and his clones launched Shikadai towards Ryōgi, which put him in reach to be able to release the genjutsu controlling him. After freeing and reconciling, Naruto captured Gekkō that had escaped during the ordeal, followed by Ryōgi being imprisoned. Ryōgi has been allowed to keep the "pawn" shōgi piece he got from Shikadai. Afterwards, Boruto finds Shikadai playing shōgi at the park where he used to meet Ryōgi and they wonder how long it will take for Ryōgi to be released from jail.

Naruto Shinden: Parent and Child Day
When Konohagakure began a new annual holiday, Parent and Child Day, Shikadai spent it with his father. They were accompanied by Metal, Inojin, and their respective fathers. When Temari learned that the winner of an eating competition would get unlimited free dumplings from Ankorodō for one year, she forced Shikamaru and Shikadai to compete, wanting the prize for herself. However, they soon overate, leaving them physically sick and unable to continue. Later that night, the Nara men ate dinner while an obviously angered Temari watched over them sternly for their failure at the competition.

Versus Momoshiki Arc
As Moegi presented the Chūnin Exams application papers to Inojin and his teammates, he and Shikadai had doubts about entering as they considered themselves rookies. Having cold feet about the situation, Moegi resorted to handing the pair letters from their mothers, which frighteningly persuaded them to take part in the exams. Remembering that they organised to meet up with Boruto, the boys hurried off to Lightning Burger. There, the three played their video games together until the pair learned that Boruto had been cheating in it, which annoyed him. Following attending the entrance ceremony for the Chūnin Exams, the three raced towards the first exam venue in the time provided in order to not get eliminated. Bypassing all traps and obstacles on their route, the team made it to the exam venue. There, the team participated in a true or false question given by Sai Yamanaka, which resulted in all competitors falling into a pit that contained a pool of ink. Having not fallen into the ink while also saving Inojin and Chōchō from falling in, the team passed the first round.

Three days later, for the second round of the exams, Team 10 competed in a game of capture the flag against a Kusagakure team. While Shikadai and Inojin subdued their two genin from capturing their flag, Chōchō captured the enemies flag, resulting in their team progressing to the next round. On the day of the final round, the event was structured as a one verse one tournament, leading to Shikadai being pitted against Yodo. Having won his match against her, Shikadai was matched against Boruto.

Managing to capture Boruto and his clones with his shadow, Boruto resorted to cheating by using his Kote to create multiple shadow clones. Outmatched, Shikadai forfeited. While in the manga Boruto's use of his Kote lead him to being disqualified for cheating which resulted in Shikadai being reinstated into the tournament as the winner of their match, in the anime, the cheating goes unnoticed, resulting in Boruto progressing to the final match. He and his team-mates cheered for Boruto when he defeated Shinki to win the tournament, but were very distraught when learning that he was cheating by using an advanced ninja tool, the Kote, which was deemed banned from the Chūnin Exams and thus was disqualified. Even more, Shikadai felt betrayed by his best friend, who lied to him about having a fair fight in their match.

When the venue was attacked by Kinshiki and Momoshiki Ōtsutsuki, Shikadai was protected by Rock Lee and saved by Gaara from the falling debris of the stadium, before being evacuated. After the attack ended and the Seventh Hokage saved all the lives there at the cost of being captured himself, Shikadai was sent to the hospital to check for injuries. After he was cleared, he saw a distraught Boruto running out, loathing himself for how he made things turn out with his father. When Boruto was allied to joined the other Kage and Sasuke to go rescue Naruto, Boruto arrived to see him off. As Boruto began to apologise, Shikadai calmly told Boruto to focus on saving his father as they could chat afterwards, forgiving him and wishing him good look.

A few days later following the successful rescue of Naruto, Shikadai and Boruto made full amends with each other, voicing their goals to become greater shinobi than their respective parents but do it following their own path.

Chōchō Arc
In the anime, when the lead actors of a popular TV drama, Tomaru and Ashina received a death threat if they continued filming their show, Team 10 was assigned to protect the actors alongside Team 7. Shikadai and his team were assigned to watch Tomaru, which Shikadai was upset about, hoping to have been assigned to the beautiful Ashina. Later, a masked attacker managed to capture Tomaru. A ransom was left that demanded 20 million ryō and for Ashina to be the one to deliver it. Shikadai and Boruto noted that this situation was not making sense as the attacker suddenly change tactics form murder to ransom. During the exchange, as Konohamaru already captured the attacker and disguised himself as the Ame-nin, Ashina was revealed to be the mastermind behind the assaults as she desperately wanted to rekindle her fame as an actress. In a last blind effort to keep her fame by burying the truth, she attempted to blow up the area. While Konohomaru stopped her from using them, the explosive tags went off, causing a landslide, which the Konoha-nin quickly saved the spectators from. Afterwards, Ashina was arrested.

Mitsuki's Disappearance Arc
In the anime, after Mitsuki's apparent betrayal of Konohakagure, the village was put on lockdown. Despite this, Boruto and Sarada decided to sneak out to find Mitsuki. Team 10 was assigned to find and bring back the two genin. The following day, they managed to intercept them. As the two refused to come back peacefully, they created a distraction and then attempted a decoy with Boruto's shadow clones. This succeeded in splitting up Team Moegi between the jōnin and her students. Sarada and Boruto were soon intercepted by their friends, who through Shikadai's strategy easily anticipated Sarada and Boruto's tactics to quickly subdue them. While ready to take them back, Shikadai noticed the snake. Once learning that a message was left on it from Mitsuki, Shikadai realised that the situation had to many inconsistencies to brand Mitsuki a traitor. Wanting to find answers, Shikadai convinced his team-mates to help Boruto and Sarada.

Eventually, they found themselves in a foggy canyon. As they began wondering about aimlessly, they found a large palace, assuming that it must be the Ryūchi Cave. Inside, they found to their surprise a very lavished setting and were greeted by a beautiful young woman. Saying the White Snake Sage was expecting them, the woman invited them to a large feast. As the others began to enjoy themselves, the woman insisted that after they eat, they could ask the sage about Mitsuki. Boruto realised the woman was deceiving them as he never mentioned Mitsuki by name. The woman revealed herself to be a snake creature and the palace and food were but illusions to test the guests. Applauding Boruto's fortitude, she explained that to see the sage, one must past a series of tests, if they fail, the snake servants may eat the guests. As only Boruto wished to speak with the sage, Shikadai and the others were separated from him and knocked out. Ultimately, proving his resolve, Boruto passed the other tests.

Once Shikadai and the others were reunited with Boruto they met with the White Snake Sage, surprised to see that she was a small and frail-looking reptilian woman. While surprised that someone would risk meeting with her for something other than learning senjutsu, the sage insisted that she couldn't help give answers beyond mastery of senjutsu. Boruto refused to give up, begging the sage to reconsider. Giving in to Boruto's stubbornness, the sage agreed to help analyse Mitsuki's snake only if they first brought to her the Reverse Scale of the giant snake Garaga, who was located in the most dangerous part of the cave. Boruto and the group accepted.

In their journey through the cave, they found several massive stone snake statue before ultimately being attacked by Garaga. The genin attempted to hold their ground but were quickly overpowered by the massive foe. As the rampaging snake attacked Sarada, another massive snake appeared to stop him. After the genin retreated to safety, the other snake appeared again, revealing himself as Aoda, Sasuke's personal summoning. As Aoda made his peaceful intentions known the group explained their goal of acquiring Garaga's Reverse Scale on the request of the White Snake Sage to get her help in finding Mitsuki. Aoda was reluctant as Garaga's savage nature made all other inhabitants of Ryūchi Cave stay clear of him, but nonetheless agreed to help Sarada. Following Shikadai's plan, they were initially able to pin down Garaga, until the rampaging foe used his spit to petrify Chōchō.

When Garaga was distracted long enough for Boruto to reach the Reverse Scale, Boruto connected with Garaga's mental plane, seeing into his sorrowful past of betrayal from his former summoner. As the two talked about the value of trust, Boruto insisted that Mitsuki was indeed his friend. Garaga scoffed at such a notion, wishing he could be there to watch Boruto's hopes crushed. Ultimately, Boruto chose not to take the scale. Instead he made deal; Garaga would enter a summoning contract with him to see Mitsuki himself and if Mitsuki did betray Boruto, the snake could eat Boruto. Intrigued by Boruto's determination, Garaga accepted the terms. After Chōchō was restored, they returned to the White Snake Sage. There, Boruto summoned Garaga before her, technically upholding his promise of bringing her the Reverse Scale. Accepting this, the sage revealed the secret thoughts inside Mitsuki's snake, revealing that Mitsuki feigned killing a guard to save his life. Still unclear why Mitsuki joined the attackers but knowing where he went headed off to the Land of Earth.

As the group began to approach the Land of Earth's border, Shikadai had Inojin and Chōchō to return to the village to report their findings. As the other genin continued their pursuit, they found the remains of a sand creature, which Boruto recognised as the same thing that attacked Mitsuki's snake. Their route soon found a group of Konoha jōnin who were defeated by one of the gate attackers, Kokuyō. The man quickly revealed himself to be an artificial being with superhumanly augmented abilities. Proving his point, he showed remarkable raw might that left the Konoha-nin on the defensive. A timely arrival of Inojin and Chōchō gave the group time to collect themselves. The Ino-Shika-Chō trio decided to hold him off as Boruto and Sarada went on ahead. Despite their perfect team formations, the enemy was able to repel all of them. Ultimately, the trio was forced to retreat. The trio soon after caught up to their friends, where they learned of Mitsuki's betrayal upon attacking Boruto and leaving with the enemies.

After Boruto awoke, Shikadai wondered whether to return to Konohagakure with their findings, or push forward to find the truth about these new enemies that posed a threat to the peaceful times. Ultimately, it was agreed to go venture on to Iwagakure and retrieve Mitsuki. Boruto suggested they go seek the help of Ōnoki. Upon arriving outside the village, it was decided that Inojin stay outside with the Akuta as to not draw any attention. Inside, they were soon spotted by Akatsuchi. He decided to help the genin as it may be related Kurotsuchi's sudden disappearance. They confronting Ōnoki, the elderly man, who once learned of their goal to find Mitsuki, turned dark and turned them away. The group was then surrounded by a bunch of Akuta, that were being controlled by Kū, the leader of the conspiracy in Iwagakure as well as Ōnoki's son and working alongside the retired Tsuchikage, much to everyone's horror.

As Ōnoki began explaining the nature of his plans and his genuine desire to protect people, realising that with his secret out in the open, he would have to accelerate his plans before the other Great Shinobi Countries learned. While Ōnoki told his son to gently takes the prisoners away, Boruto and the others chose to resist, and a fight ensured. Ultimately, Shikadai was captured by the Akuta and taken to the same holding cell as Kurotsuchi. There, the Fourth Tsuchikage explained to Shikadai how five years, her grandfather's loss of citizens, including his young grandson Kozuchi, left Ōnoki disillusioned at the world and desperate to protect his people. Kurotsuchi rejected his proposal for the Akuta researched on the grounds that they were both unstable and could case a shift in power that balanced the union between the Five Great Nations. Once finishing her explanation, she asked Shikadai to help her in ending this madness, which he firmly agreed to.

Later, Kū's scientist concluded that transplanting a human heart would likely stabilise the artificial humans. Not wanting to sacrifice the lives of Iwagakure, Kū decided to instead test the theory by using Shikadai's heart. As the scientist gassed the boy to begin harvesting his heart, Shikadai was feigned going unconscious and avoided breathing the gas by straggling himself. Once freed from his restraints, he made his move and escaped.

Shikadai managed to sneak into the Tsuchikage's office to contact his father via phone, revealing that Iwagakure was taken over as part of a plan by Ōnoki. While Shikamaru told his son to stay hidden, Shikadai insisted that he figured out enough to make a move against the enemy. The call was then cut short as the enemy forced Shikadai to retreat. He later found his allies having been captured by the enemy. As they were about to be attacked, Shikadai made his move.

Using a diversion, he helped his fellow genin escape. They were soon intercepted however by Kokuyō. Shikadai and his team-mates decided to face the foe while Boruto and Sarada moved on. Kokuyō's advanced physical prowess quickly adapted to the Ino-Shika-Chō's previously shown attack patterns and forced them back. Using a plan of Shikadai, they were able to lead Kokuyō into a trap. While nearly working, the foe proved to strong and moved in to finish Inojin. Instead, Inojin was saved by the efforts of the tiny Akuta Inojin befriended and named Akkun. The creature's efforts let Chōchō land the final blow to finish their foe, but not before Akkun was struck down. Shikadai decided to let Inojin weep for his fallen friend.

Ultimately, the Fabrications were defeated, thanks to the personal sacrifice of the Third Tsuchikage. While wanting to stay for the funeral, Naruto sent Shikadai and his friends back to Konohagakure, which Shikadai was dreading due to the confrontation with Moegi.

Shikadai later overhead Enchū Nara voice his dismay at how lacklustre the clan has been appearing since the end of the Fourth World Shinobi War. He was also disappointed at how slowly Shikadai was progressing in his training as the only son of the Shikamaru, the head of the Nara clan. Wanting to prove his worth for his clan, Shikadai began using his clan's hiden techniques exclusively on missions, which caused his team to mess up in various missions. Eventually, Enchū saw this as an opportunity to enlist Shikadai for the political world. Telling Shikadai about how connections to the Fire Daimyō and the latter's interest in teaching politics to promising young people, he offered Shikadai a two year internship under the Fire Daimyō, insisting that it would be a great honour, which Shikadai strongly considered.

While talking with Denki, who also knew the burden of living up to family reputations, insisted that he still planned to do so but in his own way. Then, a power generator began to malfunction and was at risk of exploding. Using the Wind Release his mother taught him, Shikadai was able to manually turn a generator's fan to offset the buildup of energy long enough for Denki to shut the system down. The following day, much to Enchū's dismay, Shikadai turned down the offer, instead deciding he would prove the Nara Clan's worth of uniting with the Kazekage's family by mastering both Nara Hiden and Wind Release techniques.

Konoha Shinden: Steam Ninja Scrolls
In the anime, when Shikadai joined his father and Boruto for a meal, they encountered Mirai, who was getting ready for a mission accompanying the Sixth Hokage and Might Guy.

Some time later, it was decided by his father and the Seventh Hokage to promote Shikadai to chūnin on the grounds of both his leadership skills and genuine devotion to his allies. For his first mission as team captain, he was assigned to retrieve a rare but potent medical flower called the gekkōran, which only blooms very rarely and just as quickly welters. He was given meshed-team consisting of Iwabee, Wasabi, and Boruto. They were also given a special tracking-pig named Tonsuke that could locate the flowers by scent. The mission progressed roughly as Wasabi and Iwabee kept bickering with each other. The mission became even more difficult when they were attacked by bandits and stole Tonsuke while Shikadai was injured. Fed up with his team-mates not listening to him, Shikadai decided to handle the rest of the mission alone. As his struggles continued, Boruto reminded him of why he was chosen as the first of their class to be a chūnin. Accepting his mistake in judgement, he made amends with everyone and together they were able to rescue Tonsuke while capturing the bandits and securing the gekkōran to complete their mission.

One-Tail Escort Arc
In the anime, Temari decided to take a reluctant Shikadai to her home in Sunogakure, insisting that he should visit his uncle once in awhile. Later, Temari grew concerned for her brothers when they failed to return after so long after meeting with Sasuke. Deciding to investigate, she took Shikadai with her. They ultimately found Yodo and Araya carrying Gaara back to the village. They explained how during a battle with Urashiki Ōtsutsuki, Sasuke was teleported to a different dimension and Gaara was injured while managing to temporarily seal the enemy. After being told how Kankurō was joining Boruto and Shinki in escorting Shukaku to Konohagakure, Temari trusted the Suna-nin to take care of Gaara while she and Shikadai went ahead.

They soon found the site of Kankurō's fight against Urashiki's puppets, having ended in a huge explosion. While searching for Kankurō, they found Boruto had returned, desperate to help the older ninja. Shikadai found evidence of a hole being dug as a means to escape the explosion, prompting the Konoha-nin to catch up with Shinki. They ultimately caught up to Shinki and Shukaku as they were attacked by the last of Urashiki's last puppet. The puppet's large array of weapons and attack styles made it difficult for the shinobi to battle off as Temari was ultimately wounded and partially paralysed while protecting her son. By using his mother's fan, Shikadai was able to create an opening for Boruto to destroy the puppet. Afterwards, it was decided for Boruto to head on with Shinki and Shukaku while Temari tended to her wounds with Shikadai and resumed their search for Kankurō. Shortly afterwards, they were attacked by Urashiki, who stole some of their chakra and knocked them out.

The mother and son were later found by Suna-nin, who revealed that Kankurō was alive and safe, and were brought to Konohagakure for treatment.

Time Slip Arc
In the anime, Shikadai joined his friends in testing out new surveillance equipment designed to follow their location. During the field test, Urashiki Ōtsutsuki was spotted in the area, Shikadai joined several other Konoha-nin in pursuing him. However, this turned out to be division by the alien, who placed a genjutsu on them to let him sneak into the village. Some time later, after Urashiki was finally defeated, Sumire's transfer from her genin team to the Scientific Ninja Weapons Team came through. Shikadai joined his friends in a farewell party for the former class rep. They also met Sumire's replacement for Team 15, Tsubaki Kurogane a samurai student from the Land of Iron.

Mujina Bandits Arc
The morning after Shikadai's parents' anniversary, he greeted Shikamaru when he woke up, and informed him that Temari was in a bad mood before leaving.

Later, Shikadai and his friends watched Boruto open his Extreme: Shinobi Picture Scrolls, and laughed when he got angry at opening a Seventh Hokage Naruto Uzumaki card. Calling him obsessed and asking which card he was searching for, Boruto said he'd show Shikadai if he ever found one. In the anime, they then met Tentō Madoka, son of the Fire daimyo. When seeing that Iwabee had a rare Seventh Hokage card that he was looking far, he begged Iwabee to sell it to him, but Iwabee refused. Trying to sway Iwabee, Tentō began buying up Iwabee's favourite hangouts. As Iwabee got angry and was ready to hit Tentō, Boruto Uzumaki stepped in to stop him. He insisted that having a lot of money is nothing special. While Tentō didn't think much Boruto as he wasn't made a trading card yet, Boruto insisted that one day, he will be come a powerful and cool enough ninja to be added to the game. Intrigued by Boruto, Tentō decided to leave Iwabee alone and his friends alone.

Kara Actuation Arc
In the anime, Shikadai was assigned with his team to join Team Shinki to search for one of Urashiki's remaining puppets in the Land of Wind. Before going, he found Boruto arduously training to improve his Rasengan after his crushing defeat against Deepa, wishing him good luck. On the way to the mission, Shikadai's team decided to stop for a bit to eat, where they bumped into Deepa, who casually ignored them. Once inside the restaurant, they were horrified to see that everyone in it was slaughtered, wondering if Deepa was the one responsible. After reporting their finds to Sunagakure, Shikadai's team meet up with Shinki's team.

While Shikadai was the highest ranking ninja of the group as a chūnin, they decided to let Shinki lead the way as he knew the area better, but otherwise deferring authority to Shikadai as the head of the group. Upon discovering the puppet, they were encountered by Deepa, who demanded to be given the puppet. When they refused, Deepa pelted them with a barrage of carbon cubes that even Shinki's Iron Sand Wall couldn't completely resist. Shikadai devised a strategy to detain Deepa long enough for Shinki to strike. While seemingly working, Shinki's Black Iron Fist was completely ineffective against Deepa's super durable body, who swiftly defeated them. Despite Shinki destroying the puppet rather than letting Deepa have it, he let them live. Shikadai later reported to his father and Naruto.

Later, Shikadai learned that Boruto had succeeded in developing the Wind Release: Rasengan, but it still lacked the necessary power for his goal of defeating Deepa. Concerned that Boruto's goal in training was purely to defeat Deepa, he voiced his refusal to let his best friend recklessly face down such a dangerous foe. Boruto however insisted that it is not about a wounded ego, but rather he saw Deepa as a wall to his growth as a ninja. After realising that Boruto had no intentions of hunting down Deepa, Shikadai decided to help with the training, recruiting Inojin and Chōchō for extra help. He decided for Boruto's training to focus his Rasengan on a single point to improve its penetrative power. As the day ended and little progress was made, Shikadai and Boruto began discussing the unique nature of Deepa's power, as it was all about the arrangement and pressure of carbon molecules. This suddenly gave Boruto inspiration. By the following day, Shikadai was amazed to see Boruto had succeeded in obliterating a massive boulder with his Rasengan.

Later, after Boruto and his team's victory over Deepa, Shikadai and his friends found Denki setting up an experiment to improve radio communications. Shikadai and the others decided to help him with the work. It ultimately worked, but failed to maintain stability. Denki however remained determined to improve the technology. Shikadai joined everyone in cheering.

Ao Arc
In the anime, Shikadai attended the memorial service for the fallen people of the Fourth Shinobi World War. Later, at the Training Hall, Shikadai watched Boruto fight the Seventh Hokage alongside other genin.

Kawaki Arc
When Team 7 returned from a mission with Kawaki, it was decided that the Hokage would watch over him. As Kawaki began to warm up to Boruto and his family, Shikadai eventually met the boy. He and the others began teaching him Extreme: Shinobi Picture Scrolls. Later, Shikadai and Inojin discussed Kawaki's trustworthiness while playing cards, noting how their parents felt about him. Shikadai revealed that he personally liked Kawaki because he was a straight-shooter. They noticed Boruto and Mitsuki rushing from a distance, and wondered what was happening.

Later, the village was infiltrated and attacked by Jigen, using Kawaki's Kāma as a portal to get in. Jigen was able to capture Naruto, only for Team 7 and Kawaki to successfully rescue him. Following the attack, the village was put on high alert. In the the anime, Inojin and Shikadai decided to bring Kawaki some taiyaki as a gift while he recovered in the hospital. Team 10 heard that a village archive was attacked and data was stolen. Learning that there was no tampering with the Sensing Barrier around the village, Shikadai concluded that this might be an inside job. The Team 10 genin decided to investigate. To their luck, they soon found the thief's hideout. They also noticed Kakashi performing his own investigation, who decided to work with them. They found the culprit, Koji Kashin, who escaped into the sewers. As Kakashi followed the man, he had the genin report their findings to the officials. Shikadai realised that the sewers also connected to the Thunder Rail. They were able to engage the foe, only for it to be a shadow clone. However, Shikadai's report helped Kakashi realise Koji's true goal and stop him, forcing him to retreat. Later, Shikadai voiced his new theory about Koji, that perhaps he was a former Konoha-nin, hence his undetected passage through the barrier and interest in old scrolls with data on past shinobi.

While the Ino-Shika-Chō trio were training, they were approached Kara's chief scientist, Amado. Finding him shady, the genin attempted to restrain him. He used his tech to easily repel Shikadai's technique and subsequently knocked him out with a drug. Amado strapped a bomb on Shikadai, which was set to go off in 48 hours. Sai and other Konoha-nin the appeared after alerted by Inojin. Amado asked to talk with Shikamaru, who was given communication via the Mind Body Transmission Technique. Amado stated firmly that he wished to defect to Konoha, offering his full intel on Kara and its resources, their Ten-Tails, and even on the Ōtsutsuki. By order of the Hokage, Amado was taken in for questioning. In the anime, the unconscious Shikadai was kept watch over by his team-mates.

Chūnin Re-Examination Arc
In the anime, following Isshiki's attack, Naruto decided to host another Chūnin Exam to boost morale and promote more chūnin. The day of the second exam, Shikadai encouraged his team-mates to be more invested in the exam, reminding them that as chūnin, they would receive better pay for their missions. After both his team-mates advanced to the finals, they decided to eat together at Yakiniku Q. There, Shikadai decided to treat his team-mates for a final time as genin, hinting at how much he truly hoped they would be promoted.

Code Arc
Following the defeat of Isshiki Ōtsutsuki, Boruto was put indefinitely off activate duty to be monitored for his Kāma. Shikadai and his friends decided to talk about this, as they were all concerned about Boruto's future. Later, Shikadai spotted Kawaki walking by with a troubled look on his face. Knowing that there were still concerns from the villagers about Kawaki, Shikadai insisted that Kawaki should ignore the staring. He reminded Kawaki that he was not alone anymore, that he had friends and home in Konoha. Kawaki thanked Shikadai for those words.

Video Games
In the Naruto Shippūden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 "Road to Boruto" DLC, Shikadai appears as a non-playable opponent.

Trivia

 * Before Shikadai was born, the counsellors of Sunagakure stated that if his uncles die without heirs, he, as a descendant of Rasa's bloodline, would become the Kazekage; Suna considered it a crisis for a Konohagakure-born shinobi to become Kazekage, and this reasoning was used to force Gaara into taking a wife.
 * According to the movie's light novel adaption, Shikadai's role-playing character, when he plays with Boruto and Inojin, is a silver armour-clad, two-handed sword wielding warrior.
 * According to character trivia from Boruto: Naruto Next Generations:
 * Shikadai's hobbies are shōgi, simulation games, and taking afternoon naps.
 * His favourite foods are sashimi and water eggplants.
 * His least favourite food is spinach.
 * His attributes are: 180 in intelligence, 130 in negotiations, 112 in dexterity, 90 in strength, 145 in perception, and 120 in chakra.
 * He was also given a skill rating in these particular areas:
 * Observation: ★★★★☆
 * Ninjutsu: ★★★☆☆
 * Intelligence Gathering: ★★★★☆

Quotes

 * (To Inojin) "Pranks and training are both annoying."
 * (To Boruto after capturing him) "It would be great, if you gave up soon."