[3] As a young boy, his family moved a lot due to his father's work.

[4][5] After Nakamura's family moved back to Tokyo when he was a second-grade elementary school student,[4] he started practicing shogi at the well-known Hachioji Shogi Club where Habu also studied as a young boy.

[5] In 2000, Nakamura advanced to the championship game of the 25th Elementary School Student Meijin Tournament [ja], but finished runner-up after losing to fellow future shogi professional Ryūma Tonari.

[5] After graduating from high school in March 2007, Nakamura enrolled in Waseda University's School of Political Science and Economics to continue his education in addition to being a shogi professional.

[9] In 2009, Nakamura faced Akihito Hirose in the championship match of the 40th Shinjin-Ō [ja] tournament.