Sensei: Sarutobi Asuma
Team:
-Shikamaru Nara
-Yamanaka Ino
-Akimichi Chouji
Team 10
Team 10 is led by Asuma Sarutobi. Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji are the second generation of the "Ino-Shika-Cho" Trio, their fathers having been on a team when they were young. As such, the three get along very well. After Asuma's death in Part II, the three stay together and keep the name of "Team 10", though they now function without a leader.
Asuma Sarutobi
Age: 271–282 in Part I, 30 in Part II (deceased)
Current rank: Jonin
Seiyu: Jūrōta Kosugi
Voice actor: Doug Erholtz
Asuma Sarutobi (Sarutobi Asuma) is the son of the Third Hokage and the leader of Team 10. After having a falling out with his father during his younger years Asuma left Konoha to pursue his personal interests. Prior to returning to Konoha to resume active military duty, he accumulated a bounty of 35 million ryō, something he seems to be particularly proud of. Once getting back he begins a long-standing relationship with Kurenai Yuhi, whom he frequently appears with. While the two deny being an item and try to write off the amount of time they spend together, the revelation that Kurenai is pregnant with Asuma's child in Part II makes their relationship clear. After the creation of Team 10 Asuma begins to spend much of his free time playing Shogi or Go with Shikamaru Nara, though Asuma has never been able to beat Shikamaru.
Asuma is a laid-back individual, and does not get himself involved in things unless necessary. He is often seen smoking a cigarette, and smokes about two packs of cigarettes a day. Despite this, he will break the habit when something is bothering him, such as when the Third Hokage died. His use of cigarettes is further mirrored with his Fire Release: Ash Product Burning (Katon: Haisekishō), which creates a lingering cloud of superheated ash capable of causing third-degree burns. Asuma's primary weapon in battle are his trench knives (brass knuckles with a blade on one end) that are capable of being infused with chakra. Once infused with his wind-based chakra, Asuma can use the blades to easily pierce through rock. With his Flying Swallow (Hien), he can extend the blades with his chakra to injure an enemy several feet out of the physical blade's range. Asuma's abilities are of no avail during his battle with Hidan, who is able to cause any damage to him to be transferred to Asuma. After Hidan fatally injures himself, doing the same to Asuma, Ino Yamanaka tries to heal his wounds. Knowing he can't be healed, Asuma leaves his young students some parting words before dying.
Shikamaru Nara
Profile
Age: 12-13 in Part I
15 in Part II
Date of birth: September 22
Known relatives: Shikaku Nara (father)
Yoshino Nara (mother)
Information
Current rank: Chunin
Current affiliation: Nara clan, Konohagakure
Current team: Team 10 (Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi)
Previous team: Team 10 (Asuma Sarutobi, Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi)
Team Shikamaru (Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Neji Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka, Naruto Uzumaki)
Niju Shotai (Asuma Sarutobi, Shikamaru Nara, Izumo Kamizuki, Kotetsu Hagane)
Personality
Shikamaru is an extremely unenthusiastic person, and as such lives his life avoiding work. This is partly due to seeking paths of least resistance, as he often chooses to do things he would otherwise not do if people nag him enough. His plans on life reflect this aspect of his personality, as he plans to be an average ninja making an average salary, and retire once his children become independent. In his free time he typically takes naps, watches clouds, and plays abstract logic games such as Shogi and Go. When put into a situation where he potentially needs to put effort into something, he attempts to try to find a way to avoid it such as forfeiting a battle or by pretending to be preoccupied with something else. In the instances where he can't avoid these situations, Shikamaru tends to remark "how troublesome" (mendokusē, English TV "what a drag"). He is fully aware of this side of his personality, even dubbing himself "the number one at running away".
Despite his cowardly tendencies, Shikamaru is extremely intelligent. Asuma, wondering why Shikamaru was always able to beat him at Shogi and Go despite receiving abysmal grades at the Academy, disguised an IQ test as a series of puzzles to see how smart Shikamaru really was. In doing so, Asuma found Shikamaru to have an IQ of over 200, and learned that Shikamaru's poor grades were a result of him finding lifting a pencil to be too troublesome. Nevertheless, Shikamaru works very well with his teammates as their fathers were teamed together in their youth as well. Of his teammates, Shikamaru is closest with Choji, who repays Shikamaru's confidence in him with unyielding loyalty to Shikamaru. Shikamaru also has a strong bond with Asuma, often spending time with him playing strategy games. He even vows to protect Asuma and Kurenai's unborn child for Asuma's sake.
One of Shikamaru's more distinctive characteristics is that he finds all women to be bossy and "troublesome". He also often discusses how women ought to act. This viewpoint seems to be largely due to his mother's tyrannical personality, though also seems to be influenced by his father's identical view of women. Contrary to this opinion on women, he has expressed a notably mature interest in marriage and raising a family with one son and one daughter. Ironically, most of Shikamaru's opponents have been female.
Shikamaru has had a number of his appearances coincide with those of Temari. The two face each other during the final matches of the Chunin Exams. Shikamaru has a chance to claim victory in this match, but he forfeits the match instead, having run low on chakra. Temari later comes to his aid during the Sasuke Retrieval arc and defeats Tayuya of the Sound Four to save him. Shikamaru returns the favor in the last of the anime's filler arcs and saves her from one of the Shiitenshounin. In addition, the two are seen together in their Part II debuts. In this instance, Naruto Uzumaki asks if the two are on a date, though both state that this is not the case. Temari ranks as one of the women he finds most troublesome, along with Ino and his mother.
Abilities
When the need arises, Shikamaru is quick to abandon his lazy nature and act appropriately to complete a mission or save his teammates. Using his Shadow Imitation Technique he can capture the shadow of an opponent to either keep them immobile or force them to mimic his movements. This ability causes Shikamaru to frequently play the part of stalling enemies so that his comrades can get to safety or to simply buy time. Although this role puts him in a dangerous position once he can no longer stall the opponent, Shikamaru is more than willing to serve it, feeling that sacrificing his life to ensure the safety of his friends is worth it. While he frequently exercises this sense of self-sacrifice, his genius has thus far allowed him to escape these encounters relatively unscathed. When given the chance, Shikamaru touches the tips of his fingers together, forming his hands into a circle, and closes his eyes so that he can concentrate. He then considers every element that is relevant to the situation at hand and analyzes the information to its fullest. Once finished, Shikamaru is able to plan out a battle ten moves in advance and can devise over a hundred strategies to use against an opponent.
This combination of intelligence and dedication to his teammates causes Shikamaru to become the first of the primary Konoha Genin to advance to the rank of Chunin. As such, Shikamaru is forced to lead his fellow Genin in their various missions, first seen during the Sasuke Retrieval arc. At the end of this mission most of Shikamaru's team is left gravely injured and their target manages to escape, causing the mission to be a complete failure. While he starts to question his capability to be a leader in this instance, he realizes, with help from his father, that if he steps down, he is passing on the responsibility to a potentially less able successor who may not be able to keep his team alive. Shikamaru resolves to never put his team in danger again. During the anime's filler arcs Shikamaru is assigned as an instructor at the Ninja Academy, and also proves to be much more comfortable with his leadership position.
Once becoming a Chunin, Shikamaru's father teaches him how to use the Shadow Neck Bind Technique, allowing him to use his shadow to have more interaction with an opponent by using it to choke an opponent. This more interactive capability with his shadow is put to great use over the timeskip, and by Part II's start he can use Shadow Sewing (Kage Nui), which allows his shadow to lift from the ground and either grab and throw weapons or simply pierce an opponent. He also starts to be able to utilize an opponent's shadow for the same purpose with Shadow Summoning Technique (Kageyose no Jutsu), allowing him to use their own shadow against them. After he comes into the possession of Asuma's trench knives, Shikamaru creates the Shuriken Shadow Imitation Technique (Kagemane Shuriken no Jutsu). By channeling his shadow into the knives, Shikamaru obtains a portable source of immobilization that he need only throw at an opponent's shadow to capture them and save himself the energy. Likewise, Shikamaru becomes able to use multiple shadow-based techniques at once, predominately involving the use of one of his new abilities to restrain a target and follow up with the Shadow Imitation Technique to capture them.
Plot overview
As a result of his early advance to the rank of Chunin, Shikamaru plays a considerably more active role in the plot than most members of the Konoha 11, albeit more indirectly than the primary cast. His first assignment as a Chunin is to assemble a team to retrieve Sasuke Uchiha which forces him to defeat his escorts, the Sound Four. While his teammates defeat their enemies, Sasuke is able to escape despite their best efforts. In Part II, Shikamaru is assigned to track down two members of Akatsuki. While he and his team manage to find their targets with relative ease, Akatsuki member Hidan is able to kill Asuma during the course of the battle. After Asuma's funeral, Shikamaru sets out with the surviving members of Team 10 to avenge their sensei. As his team deals with Hidan's partner, Shikamaru is able to defeat Hidan in Asuma's memory, weakening Akatsuki by one member.
Ino Yamanaka
Age: 121-132 in Part I, 15 in Part II
Current rank: Chunin
Seiyu: Ryōka Yuzuki
Voice actor: Colleen O'Shaughnessey
Ino Yamanaka (Yamanaka Ino) is a childhood friend of Sakura Haruno. Sakura was often picked on due to her sensitivity about her large forehead, though through Ino's influence, she was able to overcome this and develop her own identity. As Sakura's confidence in herself grew she became aware that Ino liked the same boy as she did: Sasuke Uchiha. Sakura soon ended their friendship so that the two could properly compete for Sasuke's affection, beginning a bitter rivalry between them. The two maintain this rivalry until the end of their match in the Chunin Exam, after which they begin to rekindle their friendship. Nevertheless, the two maintain a competitive relationship and constantly attempt to outdo the other. During their feud she became superficial, thinking highly of her looks and having no problem telling people what she thinks, such as telling Choji that he should focus more on his appearance because girls dislike overweight boys. Although both of her teammates fit the profiles of people she wouldn't associate with because of her apparent shallowness, but she actually cares deeply for their well-beings and maintains a strong bond with them.
As a member of the Yamanaka clan, Ino works in her family's flower shop and has become particularly talented in ikebana. The anime's filler arcs show that she's been able to find other uses for her time in the shop and can tell a person's profession by simply glancing at the condition of their hands. Being a Yamanaka has also shaped the mind-altering jutsu she uses. With the Mind Body Switch Technique, Ino can transfer to another's body (even animals as seen in Part II) and use it for a time. The anime explains how she learns the medical techniques she displays in Part II as well, as the manga leaves it unadressed. During the final filler arc, Ino finds herself of no use to her teammates and becomes awed of Sakura's skills. As such, Ino becomes Tsunade's second apprentice, hoping to be more useful to her friends. The anime has also shown that Ino has developed her own inner-self named "Inner Ino."
Choji Akimichi
Age: 121-132 in Part I, 15 in Part II
Current rank: Chunin
Seiyu: Kentaro Ito
Voice actor: Robbie Rist
Choji Akimichi (Akimichi Chōji) is a childhood friend of Shikamaru Nara. When his fellow peers would keep Choji from playing with them because of his size, Shikamaru stuck up for him and spent time with him instead of playing with the others. Because of Shikamaru's willingness to look past Choji's athletic deficiencies and recognize his true strength, Choji came to view Shikamaru as his best friend who he would do anything for. Choji is characterized by his love for food, his favorite being Korean barbecue, general snacks and sweets, and basically anything that is edible. His nigh-constant hunger is a constant annoyance for his teammates, as sating himself often comes before other necessities such as stealth and teamwork. Despite his eating habits Choji is very sensitive about his size and becomes highly agitated when somebody calls him "fat" (he refers to himself as "big boned," "chubby," or "pleasingly plump"). Once called "fat," Choji's resolve to fight is elevated to new levels and he becomes much more hostile to his opponents. In Part II he starts to look more muscular than obese, causing him to look like he always claimed he did: big-boned. Also in Part II, his attire is more like his father's red armor. Even with this new look, he is apparently still sensitive about his size, and others make it a point to avoid using the word "fat" around him.
As an Akimichi, Choji's style of combat focuses on increasing his size. At the series' start he uses Multi-Size Technique to serve this purpose, reshaping him into a large, round form. Once in this form he can use Human Bullet Tank (Nikudan Sensha, Viz "Human Juggernaut," English TV "Human Boulder Jutsu") to tuck his limbs inside his increased mass and roll at opponents at rapid speeds. Choji sees a number of advancements in Part II; the Multi-Size Technique, while still increasing his size, no longer makes him round. This more manageable form gives him better maneuverability, as he can now fight as he normally would only with the added bonus of his increased size. While he is seen using the Partial Multi-Size Technique in Part I, Choji also becomes more adept with it in Part II, and is now able to use it with little effort and with a better reaction time.
