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I think he does a little bit of both. It's noted in the manga that he doesn't forget anything he takes note of, and I like to keep that in because it gives me a reason to make him an asshole without reason. There is no physical or mental way for someone to be overly social and nice with a brain like Shikamaru's—technically, he should be more socially stunted than what I make of him but hey. It's RP! So I'll take my liberties there.

Back on topic, he probably does less work than the average hardworking student. For example, if Sakura, an average, hard-working student who gets good grades, takes notes in class, pays attention, and studies five extra hours... Shikamaru probably got the same grades or even better just by listening in class and looking over the textbook once or twice before that same exam. Time efficiency, baby! That, and he gets to review over the basics over and over again because of his job, so he's always pretty well-versed in what he studies.