Naruto: The Shadow Lord of the Nara Clan

Although he trusted his son, Shikaku did not agree to his request.

"No!"

"Let me determine the drug's ingredients first."

Just kidding, this is Orochimaru's research result.

Who knows what kind of amazing drug that experimental fanatic will invent?

Without ensuring the safety of the medication, there's no way Lu Jiu would allow Lu Ying to come into contact with something so dangerous.

got rejected.

But Lu Ying wasn't angry; he could understand Lu Jiu's thoughts.

Anyway, the formula is in our own research institute, so we'll be able to get our hands on it sooner or later.

Therefore, Lu Ying was not in a hurry at all.

He shrugged nonchalantly, then his attention was immediately drawn to a figure in the corridor.

"Shikamaru, come here."

Shikamaru, who had been hiding quietly to the side, opened his dead fish eyes and walked over with a reluctant expression.

In reality, he was just pretending.

Being noticed at this moment fills my heart with warm joy.

"what?"

Seeing his little brother's pretentious mature demeanor, Lu Ying's lips curled into a slight smile, and he slapped his pineapple-shaped head:

"Reinstall?"

"Looks like someone doesn't want the discharge gift I gave him."

Having his thoughts exposed, Shikamaru awkwardly looked away, scratching his head with a slight blush, and stammered, unable to speak clearly.

"Okay, here you go."

Lu Ying chuckled; teasing young Shikamaru was one of his few sources of amusement.

"What is this?"

Shikamaru casually accepted Shikakage's gift, seemingly unconcerned.

But his eyes betrayed his eagerness.

Opening the gift box and taking out the note inside, Shikamaru's gaze swept over it, his eyes widening further and further.

"Nara...an apology letter?"

"Oh, sorry, I took the wrong one." Lu Ying grinned and took out another gift box.

"No way, I want this too!" Shikamaru slapped away Shikakage's hand, which was trying to 'steal' the apology letter, and rarely showed such a childish expression.

He quickly opened another gift box, and looking at the ninjutsu scroll inside, he was beaming with excitement.

From the time he was old enough to understand, he wanted to learn the family's shadow magic!

Today, I finally got it!

"Thank you, bro!"

Both the apology letter and the secret scroll stirred waves of surprise in young Shikamaru's heart.

At this moment, he felt that no one had treated him better than Lu Ying!

[Target's favorability level meets the requirements!]

[Contract achieved! Shadow Contract (Nara Shikamaru) obtained!]

Shikamaru, who was happily accepting his little brother's thanks, suddenly raised an eyebrow, grabbed Shikamaru's cheek, and excitedly pulled hard:

"Okay, okay, thank you again, brother!"

Looking at the two brothers getting along so well, Lu Jiu smiled with relief.

What he wanted to protect was the scenery right in front of him, wasn't it?

But his smile didn't last long.

Thinking of some of the tough and troublesome people in his family, his head began to ache.

—How did they end up taking this all the way to the Third Hokage...?

……

【Shadow Kin - Nara Shikamaru】

[Result: Comprehension efficiency increased by 300%]

[Additional Skill: Clear Thinking (Grants instant thinking ability)]

[Note: This ability increases as the user's own strength increases.]

After examining the shadow template provided by his younger brother, Lu Ying pondered the effects of the skill "Clarity of Mind and Strategy".

—The ability to think instantly…

Shadow soldiers are not capable of independent thought; all their actions are solely to carry out the orders of the Shadow Lord.

They're like AI; you input something, and they output it.

So...

—Is this considered an enhancement of AI computing power?

Lu Ying never expected that her little brother's template would have such an effect.

Although it did not grant the Shadow Soldiers any new combat abilities.

But this ability to think instantly is, in some ways, even more powerful and rare.

It enables shadow soldiers to learn leadership and command!

—Now the puzzle is complete.

Lu Ying smiled gently; he had found a shortcut to help Number Two quickly advance to Shadow Knight.

Use Naruto's template to quickly level up Number Two, then switch to Shikamaru's template to advance it!

The completion of the second phase of the professional mission is just around the corner!

Overjoyed, Lu Ying closed the system panel with satisfaction, only then noticing Lu Jiu's worried expression as he led the way.

"Don't worry, Dad."

"It's just a bunch of idiots framing me."

Upon hearing this, Lu Jiu gave a wry smile:

"The problem is, you really did cripple Nara."

"They're fixated on this point, what if...?"

Lu Ying was not worried at all about this.

Ultimately, it's not like it's Nara... I told him.

What threat could a bunch of guys who are using other people's names to cause trouble for Lu Ying pose?

Even if it's Nara himself... Shikakage has plenty of ways to make him 'forgive himself'.

Following Shikaku, they arrived at the Hokage Building and went upstairs to enter the Ninja Waiting Room.

The moment they stepped inside, they were met with hateful gazes.

Lu Ying walked past the oppressed clansmen without a care in the world, and stood with Lu Jiu in the position of "defendant".

Before Shikakage and Shikaku could speak, the Nara clansmen suddenly stood up and shouted:

"Hokage-sama, the Nara Shikakage is harming his own kind!"

"I request that he be imprisoned in Konoha Prison!"

His voice was full of grievance and dissatisfaction, as if he were the one who had been beaten.

Lu Ying looked at him with disdain, as if watching a clown performance.

He actually knew very well what these guys wanted to do.

It's simply that Danzo abandoned them, and for the sake of their remaining power and status, they had no choice but to throw caution to the wind and seek help from the Third Hokage.

But will Hiruzen Sarutobi help them?

He is the eldest son of the Hokage's trusted confidant!

This thought only existed in Shikakage's mind for a moment before he suddenly realized that Hiruzen Sarutobi might actually be capable of doing such a thing!

That year, when the Hidden Cloud Village kidnapped Hinata Hyuga, even though the other party attacked first, for the sake of so-called stability, they actually made Hizashi Hyuga die in her place to atone for their sins!

At that time, Konoha was no weaker than Kumogakure, so why bother?

Even if Konoha really did become weaker, was it necessary to send Hyuga Hizashi to his death in place of Hyuga Hiashi?

He simply couldn't understand this kind of thought process.

At this moment, Lu Ying understood why her father was troubled.

"Nara... is Nara Shizuku's son. Nara Shizuku has been secretly colluding with Orochimaru and is already a rogue ninja..."

Seeing that Hiruzen Sarutobi had not spoken for a long time, Shikaku couldn't help but get anxious and repeatedly refuted his clansmen's words.

He wanted to use Shikakage's identity as a rogue ninja from Nara Saltwater to legitimize his actions.

But the opposition had anticipated Shikaku's thoughts and sneered:

"What does the father's mistake have to do with the son?"

"Every child of Konoha is a inheritor of the Will of Fire!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Jiu pursed his lips tightly and remained silent.

This is precisely Hiruzen Sarutobi's governing philosophy, and also the reason why he was reluctant to take action against Uchiha Hatake.

Just as the scene fell into dead silence, Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke.

"Lu Ying did the right thing."

"I strongly agree with his approach."