Here’s Why Shikamaru Is the New 8th Hokage in -TWO BLUE VORTEX-!
Boruto’s time skip will, as you can imagine, bring a lot of changes, as a lot of things undoubtedly happened in the three years since Boruto ran away after his life was switched with Kawaki’s. One of the biggest changes concerns the position of Hokage, as Naruto was sent to another dimension and is believed to be dead at the moment. This is why he was ultimately replaced as the Hokage, and in this article, we are going to explain how and why Shikamaru became the 8th Hokage.
Chapter 81 of Boruto confirms that Shikamaru is, indeed, the 8th Hokage at this time, with Konohamaru Sarutobi serving as his Chief Aide. The details of his election have not yet been revealed, but we assume that Kishimoto will address them at one point or another. Shikamaru Nara seems more like a temporary solution, and he was probably chosen because he was the Hokage’s Chief Aide, which means that the transition was easy in that aspect. But, as Naruto will probably come back, Shikamaru doesn’t seem to be a likely permanent successor of his. Still, a lot of this is just a guess, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens in the future.
The rest of this article will concern the election of Shikamaru Nara as the 8th Hokage, i.e., as Naruto’s successor. The Boruto time skip brought a lot of changes to the series, and in this article, we are going to reveal what is known about these changes, as we’ve had the chance to read Chapter 81. A lot of details are still scarce, but we’ll tell you as much as we can. Be careful, though, as there will be a lot of spoilers in this article, so approach the article with utmost care.
Shikamaru Nara was chosen as the 8th Hokage, but the circumstances are still scarce
Before we actually tell you what happened with Shikamaru, we first have to explain, in short, why Naruto is not the Hokage anymore. So, going back to the final pre-time skip characters of Boruto; we know that Kawaki was furious because he failed to kill Momoshiki when he tried to kill Boruto; Boruto, of course, survived, as did Momoshiki.
Kawaki’s plan at the time was to rid the world of the Otsutsuki, as he realized that this villainous clan was the biggest threat to the world, as he himself had experience with being Isshiki’s vessel. So, in order to make his plan happen, he came up with another approach. He came to Naruto and Hinata, who had adopted him as their son, and told them that he loved them very much, but he also told them his plan, which included eliminating everyone who was connected to the Otsutsuki.
This immediately struck them, as they realized that he also meant Boruto, and while Naruto said that he would first have to go through him if he wanted to get to Boruto, Kawaki activated the Daikokuten technique (which is, ironically, an Otsutsuki technique) and trapped both Naruto and Hinata in a separate dimension, where they remain in a state of slumber, as was confirmed in Chapter 81.
With Omnipotence’s effects kicking in, Boruto’s and Kawaki’s histories soon switched, and Boruto was forced to flee Konoha as a villain, but Sarada managed to convince her father, Sasuke, to help him. And this is where the time skip kicks in. Three years later, Sarada Uchiha is in the Hokage’s office, and we see that a new 8th Hokage has been elected. It actually makes sense – first of all, all of Konoha thought that Naruto was dead, so he had to be replaced. But, despite the fact that Naruto was not, in fact, dead, he was unable to fulfill his duties, so he had to be replaced anyhow.
So, who is the 8th Hokage? None other than Shikamaru Nara! Konohamaru Sarutobi is his current Chief Aide, just like Shikamaru was the former Hokage’s Chief Aide. And while he does clash with Sarada over Boruto, he doesn’t seem to be a bad guy here from what we could see in the chapter. But who is Shikamaru anyway?
Shikamaru is the only son of Shikaku Nara and Yoshino Nara, a student of Asuma Sarutobi and a teammate of Ino Yamanaka and Choji Akimichi. After facing some missions together with his companions, Shikamaru participates in the Chunin selection exams. He qualifies for the last round, where he is drawn against Temari. After leading a sweaty but brilliant fight, he retires because he is too tired to fight.
Therefore, the victory goes to his opponent; however, Shikamaru’s great intelligence is highlighted in this fight, so he was promoted thanks to his great strategic skills. When Sasuke tried to leave the village, Shikamaru formed a team to stop the Uchiha and prevent him from joining forces with Orochimaru. Due to the failure of his first mission, he decides to stop being a ninja but regains confidence when he talks to his friends.
In the second series, Shikamaru is still a Chunin but has improved significantly and has gone on many missions; on one of them, he witnessed the death of his master at the hands of Hidan, which devastated him. Later, after Jiraiya’s death, he helps decipher the code Jiraiya left on Fukusaku’s back, along with Shiho and Naruto. During the Fourth Shinobi World War, Shikamaru is part of the Fourth Division along with his friend Choji and Temari. At one point, he goes with the rest of the alliance to the main battlefield, where Kakashi, Gai, Naruto, and Killer Bee are fighting against Madara and Obito Uchiha.
After suffering a mortal wound, Naruto saves him, thanks to the chakra of the Nine-Tailed Fox. In this instance, Shikamaru reveals that his time has not yet come for him, as he must become Naruto’s right-hand man when Naruto becomes Hokage, which is what eventually happens. Together with the other ninjas, he is trapped by the Infinite Tsukuyomi, but he will be freed once Naruto and Sasuke undo the illusion. A few years after the end of the war, he marries Temari, with whom he will have a son, Shikadai, and will become Chief Aide to the seventh Hokage, Naruto.
So, as you can see, Shikamaru is a trustworthy character who definitely had the pedigree to become Naruto’s successor, and the fact that he was actually the Hokage’s Chief Aide made the transition smoother, as he was well-acquainted with what the Hokage does and his daily routine.
This is why it somewhat made sense that he was, as an experienced and loyal shinobi, chosen as Naruto’s successor. Now, what we don’t know yet are the circumstances of his election, as Chapter 81 never focused on that, but knowing that Boruto is going to stick around for a while, we can actually state that we’re quite certain that Kishimoto is going to provide us with more details in the future. So, this is everything we know so far, but keep following us for more information, as we are going to update the article as soon as more information arrives.
