The Second Hokage (N-613) isn’t exactly an inexpensive acquisition, but it can be paired effectively with Shikamaru Nara (N-238). I’ve briefly touched on Shikamaru and the Second Hokage having had some strong showings before. However, there are several strong units that players can form together with these two cards.
This tag team is really quite strong, though it may at least initially appear that a lot of the strength rests on the back of the Leaf Village hero. The Second Hokage had sought peace at whatever costs necessary, and the stats of the card clearly show this. The 3/3, 6/4 water attributed Hokage is pretty strong on numbers alone. Two water Chakra can be discarded and a jutsu may be removed from the game when the Matchless Hero aspect becomes valid.
It may be funny to think that Shikamaru might be leading around one of the greatest Leaf Ninja to ever live, but his card can do just that. Shikamaru is rated much more humbly than the Second Hokage, at 0/1, 1/3. However, he has the ability to organize teams of ninja. Whether by melding him and the Second Hokage together, or by forming a team to back up this ninja, the force on the field can be quite unstoppable by any enemy shinobi.
For instance, get together four Genin and place them in a team with Shikamaru at the head. Then, even with the Second Hokage standing alone, there will be plenty of material with which to defend him. After all, a player wouldn’t want an expensive card like that to be easily removed or simply wasted. While there are, of course, other ways to develop a defensive perimeter around a card that needs to be protected, the N-238 version of Shikamaru Nara is particularly useful for this purpose.
