Nara Keiko

**Nara Keiko**(formerly **Gōketsu Keiko**, and before that **Mori Keiko**) is a Leaf ninja and former missing-nin from Mist, who holds a summoning contract from the Pangolin clan. She is the wife of Nara Shikamaru.

## Social

### Marital status

Married to Nara Shikamaru of the Nara Clan

### Other ties

Mori Ami- dear sisterHanabi- student in the art of glaring

## Combat

### Specialty

Pangolin SummonerRanged attacks

Quality Assurance

### Equipment

Ninja wireStorage seals (various)

Explosive seals (lots)

Various other seals (so many)

## Appearance

Black hair in a short bob, dark eyes, slim, waifish build. Slightly above average height for a 14-year-old. Tends towards fixed stares. Low affect.

## Background

Keiko was bullied by other kids, such as Mori girls destroying Keiko's plush kitten.

## Plot

Had a plush kitten as a child- Mewramasa.

Said kitten got disemboweled after a failed duel with another Mori girl.

During her time in the swamp, when Keiko became panic stricken, Inoue was around to help her stay clam.

### Exam Preparation

Keiko took the lead in asking questions about the exam. After, she endured a psychological warfare training session with Neira and Mari. From that session, she learned of Noburi's crush on her.

Mari asked Keiko about family. Keiko doesn't care about her parents all that much, but Ami was very important to her. She was afraid that Ami would reject her.

Shiori organized a date for Shikamaru and Keiko, approved by Nara Yoshino. Notably, they mistakenly purchased a board game which they mistaken for a variant of *Strategic Domination*.

### Chunin Exam

Before the second event in the Chūnin exam, Keiko was able to meet Ami, but she became troubled about the status of her relationship with her sister.

### Chunin Exam Tournament

Before the start of a battle between Hazo and Keiko, they worked together to explain the concept of uplift, with Keiko acting as the cynical foil to her naive and well meaning brother.Keiko defeated Hazo by setting her brother on fire.

Keiko learned of Hazo's meeting with Ami through the delivery of a letter. She got mad at her brother.

She finally won the tournament by defeating Aburame Shino.

Hazo delivered a letter to Keiko, by which Keiko learned the time and place for meeting with her sister.

### Hat Crisis

The moral crisis posed by the Pangolin proved too much for Keiko, so she decided to unilaterally canceled the Skytower deal with the pangolin, causing much upset for the Goketsu clan. Hazo tried to stop her before letting Mari takes over. However, with backup from Tenten, she was able to resist not canceling the deal. She assumed that by throwing the clan into a financial crisis that the Goketsu won't forgive her.

Keiko married Nara Shikamaru to fulfill the Goketsu political goal and to stabilize Leaf politics. She was glad to be able to meet Ami on her wedding day and noted that Ami was clearly subverting her minders and participating in illegal political activities.

After the seal infusion failure incident that wiped out hundred of civilians, Keiko helped Hazo in setting up temporary housing by summoning her pangolins for Hazo's uses.

Keiko delivered a message to Hazo about the latest development in acquiring the votes for the hat.

## Personality

[some quote about the horrors of reality]

Dry wit, quite sarcastic. Very verbose.

Brittle confidence and extremely low feeling of self-worth.

Considers her value nothing more than that of a tool, although that view may swiftly change. [with current events, perhaps even soon]

Often resorts to intimidation as a defense mechanisms against others. [tournament, some interactions with Hazou?]

Has a massive phobia of touch, outside of combat situations. This doesn't apply to Ami, as she trusts her unconditionally.[had a monologue about that]

Recently, she felt her agency ignored, everyone making decisions on her matter without consulting her.

## Relationships

* Mori Ami - Keiko loves her deeply and unconditionally, and practically worships her, and would give her anything she asks for, even after severing ties. They grew up together, and relied on each other for continued mental stability. Was always unfavorably compared to her, growing up. She was shocked when Ami pushed her away, but her relationship eventually recovered.
* Gōketsu Hazō - They bonded over shared difficulty of dealing with people, as well as dealing with it using flowcharts and lists.[very beginning of the quest had that conversation] They invented CCnJ (Clear Communication no Jutsu) technique together- eliminating difficulty with nonverbal communication by incorporating it into verbal message.
* Tenten - They are in a deep, romantic relationship. Their bond is strong, yet incredibly delicate. Said relationship is kept largely a secret, due to general homophobic atmosphere. , and backlash it could cause. They sometimes train together, both having a ranged weaponry specialty. She finds spending time with Tenten equally restful as spending it alone.
* Gōketsu Kagome - She is aware that Kagome's social competence is barely above her own.
* Gōketsu Mari - She was infatuated with her, and when she made everyone knows, Keiko's reaction to the imagined team reaction caused her to disappear from the team for some time. Keiko suspected Mari as an accomplice on the fake suicide mission. While not entirely forgiving, she still feels she owes Mari sensei her life, and trusts and loves her all the same.
* Gōketsu Akane - Keiko did not like Akane's bright outlook on life, she still considered Akane her sister.
* Gōketsu Noburi - Noburi had a one sided crush on her, which she was made aware of, and turned him down. They have good relations as siblings. While there's less mutual understanding, unlike with Hazou, he makes up for it with brotherly care and genuine promise to beat up those who try to cause her grief.
* Gōketsu Jiraiya - While far from being a full family, or close as original Team Uplift are, she still considers him family. He did promise her a juvenile chakra pony for birthday.
* Hyūga Hanabi - Hanabi seeked out Keiko, wishing to learn the ways of the killing glare. Now she seeks a tutor in Neiji, wishing to impress Keiko upon her return from the exams.

## Abilities

See her character sheet for up to date information.

## References

1. ↑ Interlude: A Warrior Falls
2. ↑ Interlude: A Warrior Falls - Keiko's memories of her "master's" death
3. ↑ Chapter 150
4. ↑ Chapter 151
5. ↑ Interlude: Agencies
6. ↑ Chapter 158
7. ↑ Chapter 241 Part 1
8. ↑ Chapter 241 Part 2
9. ↑ Chapter 244
10. ↑ Chapter 248B
11. ↑ Chapter 252
12. ↑ Chapter 266
13. ↑ Chapter 266
14. ↑ Chapter 271
15. ↑ Chapter 246: The Tournament, Round Three, Fight 2​
16. ↑ Chapter 253
17. ↑ Velorien's quote on keeping it a secret
18. ↑ Velorien's quote on Lee's fuckup and homophobia.
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 ​Chapter 215: Concatenation​ - Keiko's narration
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Chapter 234 - Keiko's monologue during her tournament fight
21. ↑ Chapter 216 - Keiko and Jiraiya's conversation
22. ↑ Interlude: Potential - Keiko x Hanabi, before the tournament
23. ↑ Interlude: Seeds of War​- Hanabi x Neji, during the tournament