Nakajima was included in Norio Sasaki's Japan U-20 national team squad for the 2010 U-20 World Cup in Germany. She appeared in all of Japan's three matches against Mexico, Nigeria and England, scoring one goal in a 3–1 win against England, as Japan were eliminated in the group stage. Nakajima received her first cap for the senior team against United States on May 14, 2011. On July 10, 2013, she was called up to the 2013 East Asian Cup in South Korea. She scored her first goal on July 20 in a 2–0 win against China in the first East Asian Cup final round match. In 2014, she played at 2014 Asian Cup and 2014 Asian Games. Japan won the championship at Asian Cup and 2nd place at Asian Games. In 2018, she played at 2018 Asian Cup and Japan won their second consecutive title.