Naruto: I am Nara Shikamaru

Leaping across rooftops, Shikamaru made his way to the Hokage's office again the next morning. As he thought back on last night's "three-way flight." he felt incredibly refreshed. Gentle and sweet Haku, mature and alluring Natsuhi...

"Hmm... It'd be perfect if I had a few more like them." Shikamaru thought wickedly to himself.

Creak, 

As he stepped into the Hokage's office, Shikamaru was momentarily stunned. Not only was the Third Hokage present, but so was a man he recognized instantly from his past life, one of the legendary Sannin, the infamous Pervy Sage, Jiraiya!

"Good morning, Sensei! Good morning, Jiraiya-sama!" Shikamaru greeted him politely.

"Wahaha! Not bad, kid! You actually recognize the great me!" Jiraiya boomed in his usual exaggerated tone, before suddenly freezing. "Wait… did you just call him Sensei?"

He turned to the Third Hokage with a look of confusion.

"Ahem…" Hiruzen coughed twice before explaining, "I took Shikamaru as my student yesterday. That makes you two… brothers-in-training."

"Oh?" Jiraiya's eyes flashed with interest, and his expression turned serious. "And what's this kid capable of?" Clearly, he wasn't ready to acknowledge Shikamaru just yet and asked Hiruzen loudly.

"Nothing much." the Third Hokage replied with a smile, "but even I couldn't keep him here if I wanted to."

"What?!" Jiraiya turned and looked at Shikamaru again, now with a much more cautious gaze. Then, curling his lips into a smirk, he said, "Interesting… I'm getting more and more curious about you, brat. How about this, beat me in a match, and I'll officially recognize you."

"Sure. When and where?" Shikamaru didn't want to be underestimated either, so he agreed without hesitation.

"Ahem." The Third Hokage interjected. 

"Shikamaru still has the Chunin Exams in a few days. Let's postpone the challenge until after they're done."

He then turned to Shikamaru. "By the way, what brings you here today?"

"Ah, Sensei…" Shikamaru finally remembered the serious reason for his visit. He had only recalled it last night: on the day of the Chunin Exams, Orochimaru would invade Konoha alongside Sunagakure, and the Third Hokage would lose his life. Since he had now become Hiruzen's student, Shikamaru didn't want to let that same tragedy play out. So he made up a story about having come across some intelligence about a possible attack and relayed what he knew.

"Is that so? Interesting… You know, you're the second one to come to me with this today."

To Shikamaru's surprise, the Third Hokage simply smiled in response.

"Sensei…" Shikamaru was taken aback. Judging by Hiruzen's calm demeanor, it seemed he had known even before Jiraiya mentioned it. But if that was the case… why did things play out like they did in the original timeline?

"Ahh… Konoha has been at peace for too long. So long, in fact, that rot has started to settle in. Perhaps it's time to wake everyone up." Hiruzen said, as if he had read Shikamaru's mind. His voice was calm, but carried the weight of something deeper.

Shikamaru was left in stunned silence. But as he turned the thought over in his mind, he suddenly understood. Of course the Hokage would be aware of such a major plot like an invasion by Orochimaru and Sunagakure. In the original story, it was precisely this incident that sparked rapid growth in the younger generation and revitalized the village. So, everything had actually been part of the Third Hokage's larger plan. In the end, he willingly sacrificed himself to accompany those who died in battle...

Leaving the Hokage's office, Shikamaru felt a heavy weight in his heart. Some things, he now realized, couldn't be changed. The Third Hokage had made his choice long ago.

Just then, a large hand clapped down on his shoulder.

"Hey, brat! How about I treat you to a meal?" Jiraiya's voice rang out from behind.

"Sure! Let's go to Ichiraku Ramen!" Shikamaru replied with a grin. It had been a while since he'd had ramen…

"Boss! Another bowl!" Shikamaru called out, completely ignoring Jiraiya's pained expression beside him. It was already his tenth bowl.

"Pervy Sage, aren't you training Naruto these days?" Shikamaru suddenly asked, casually switching to a more familiar nickname for Jiraiya.

"Hey! How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that!" Jiraiya shouted, clearly agitated.

"Then stop calling me 'brat'" Shikamaru said with a blank look.

Pfft, 

Ayame, the ramen shop owner's daughter, couldn't help but laugh out loud at the banter.

"Wow… she's cute…" Jiraiya immediately went slack-jawed, cheeks flushing as he stared at Ayame. 

"If only she wasn't wearing such annoying clothes…"

He made a lewd grabbing motion in the air toward her chest.

"Ahh! You pervy old man!" 

Ayame screamed and —

BANG!

Smashed a pot down on Jiraiya's head before storming off, hips swaying indignantly.

Pffft…

Shikamaru couldn't hold back his laughter at the giant bump on Jiraiya's head.

"See? Everyone agrees, you are the Pervy Sage!"

"You little punk! Ruining my reputation, take this, Rasengan!"

Jiraiya, both embarrassed and furious, formed a glowing Rasengan and lunged at Shikamaru.

"Whoa! You're seriously doing this?!" Shikamaru jumped aside with a shout.

"Get back here, brat! Take my Rasengan like a man!" Jiraiya shouted, chasing after him. 

Boom!

A massive crater formed where the Rasengan struck the ground.

"Damn it! He's serious, I'm outta here!" Shikamaru bolted, fleeing as fast as he could.

"Stop running! I won't rest until I teach you a lesson today!" Jiraiya yelled as he took off after him, leaving the stunned ramen shop owner gaping behind them.

"Hey! You haven't paid yet!!" The owner's angry shout echoed down the street…

Clap clap, 

Shikamaru and Jiraiya high-fived each other triumphantly a few blocks away.

"Incredible teamwork." they said in unison. "Another successful dine and dash!"

"Hahaha! Not bad, brat! You've got potential!" Jiraiya threw an arm around Shikamaru's shoulders, still laughing.

"Ugh, let go already!" Shikamaru grumbled, his face red. Pervy Sage totally did that on purpose…

⚔────

A/N: If you're enjoying the story, you can read up to Chapter 54 (28+ chapters ahead of the current one) on my Patreon: patreon.com/vynthor