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Series poster for Naruto (2002)

Naruto

2002–2007
Ended • 4 Seasons • 220 Episodes
Action & AdventureAnimationSci-Fi & Fantasy
Director: Hayato Date
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Overview

Naruto Uzumaki, a mischievous adolescent ninja, struggles as he searches for recognition and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the village's leader and strongest ninja.

Seasons

5 listed
Status
Ended
Seasons
4 seasons
Episodes
220 episodes
First aired
Oct 3, 2002
Last aired
Feb 8, 2007
Episode length
24m
Network
TV Tokyo

Latest episode: S4 E220 Departure (Feb 8, 2007)

  1. Season 1 poster

    Season 1

    52 episodes Oct 2, 2002 7.4

    Deep within the Hidden Leaf Village, young ninja Naruto Uzumaki carries sealed inside him the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit, which once almost destroyed the village. Always an outcast because of his secret, now Naruto battles alongside his teammates Sasuke and Sakura to prove to himself and everyone else that he's the greatest ninja ever. But he's got a long list of challenges to face before he gets there!

    1. 1 Enter: Naruto Uzumaki!
    2. 2 My Name Is Konohamaru!
    3. 3 Sasuke and Sakura: Friends or Foes?
    4. 4 Pass or Fail: Survival Test
    5. 5 You Failed! Kakashi's Final Decision
    6. 6 A Dangerous Mission! Journey to the Land of Waves!
    7. 7 The Assassin of the Mist!
    8. 8 The Oath of Pain
    9. 9 Kakashi: Sharingan Warrior
    10. 10 The Forest of Chakra
    11. 11 The Land Where a Hero Once Lived
    12. 12 Battle on the Bridge! Zabuza Returns!
    13. 13 Haku's Secret Jutsu: Crystal Ice Mirrors
    14. 14 The Number One Hyperactive, Knucklehead Ninja Joins the Fight!
    15. 15 Zero Visibility: The Sharingan Shatters
    16. 16 The Broken Seal
    17. 17 White Past: Hidden Ambition
    18. 18 The Weapons Known as Shinobi
    19. 19 The Demon in the Snow
    20. 20 A New Chapter Begins: The Chunin Exam!
    21. 21 Identify Yourself: Powerful New Rivals
    22. 22 Chunin Challenge: Rock Lee vs. Sasuke!
    23. 23 Genin Takedown! All Nine Rookies Face Off!
    24. 24 Start Your Engines: The Chunin Exam Begins!
    25. 25 The Tenth Question: All or Nothing!
    26. 26 Special Report: Live from the Forest of Death!
    27. 27 The Chunin Exam Stage 2: The Forest of Death
    28. 28 Eat or Be Eaten: Panic in the Forest
    29. 29 Naruto's Counterattack: Never Give In!
    30. 30 The Sharingan Revived: Dragon-Flame Jutsu!
    31. 31 Bushy Brow's Pledge: Undying Love and Protection!
    32. 32 Sakura Blossoms!
    33. 33 Battle Formation: Ino-Shika-Cho!
    34. 34 Akamaru Trembles: Gaara's Cruel Strength!
    35. 35 The Scroll's Secret: No Peeking Allowed
    36. 36 Clone vs. Clone: Mine Are Better Than Yours!
    37. 37 Surviving the Cut! The Rookie Nine Together Again!
    38. 38 Narrowing the Field: Sudden Death Elimination!
    39. 39 Bushy Brow's Jealousy: Barrage of Lions Unleashed!
    40. 40 Kakashi and Orochimaru: Face-to-Face!
    41. 41 Kunoichi Rumble: The Rivals Get Serious!
    42. 42 The Ultimate Battle: Cha!
    43. 43 Killer Kunoichi and a Shaky Shikamaru
    44. 44 Akamaru Unleashed! Who's Top Dog Now?
    45. 45 Surprise Attack! Naruto's Secret Weapon!
    46. 46 Byakugan Battle: Hinata Grows Bold!
    47. 47 A Failure Stands Tall!
    48. 48 Gaara vs. Rock Lee: The Power of Youth Explodes!
    49. 49 Lee's Hidden Strength: Forbidden Secret Jutsu!
    50. 50 The Fifth Gate: A Splendid Ninja Is Born
    51. 51 A Shadow in the Darkness: Danger Approaches Sasuke
    52. 52 Ebisu Returns: Naruto's Toughest Training Yet!
  2. Season 2 poster

    Season 2

    52 episodes 7.7

    Before the final round of the Chunin Exam, Naruto receives some special training from the legendary Toad Sage, Jiraiya. When the battles resume, Naruto is ready, but what about Sasuke? He's about to face the one ninja no one, not even Naruto thinks he can beat. But in the midst of everything, a sinister plot is set in motion, and the Village Hidden in the Leaves finds itself under attack!

    1. 53 Long Time No See: Jiraiya Returns!
    2. 54 The Summoning Jutsu: Wisdom of the Toad Sage!
    3. 55 A Feeling of Yearning, a Flower Full of Hope
    4. 56 Live or Die: Risk It All to Win It All!
    5. 57 He Flies! He Jumps! He Lurks! Chief Toad Appears!
    6. 58 Hospital Besieged: The Evil Hand Revealed!
    7. 59 The Final Rounds: Rush to the Battle Arena!
    8. 60 Byakugan vs. Shadow Clone Jutsu!
    9. 61 Ultimate Defense: Zero Blind Spot!
    10. 62 A Failure's True Power
    11. 63 Hit It or Quit It: The Final Rounds Get Complicated!
    12. 64 Zero Motivation: The Guy with Cloud Envy!
    13. 65 Dancing Leaf, Squirming Sand
    14. 66 Bushy Brow's Jutsu: Sasuke Style!
    15. 67 Late for the Show, But Ready to Go! The Ultimate Secret Technique is Born!
    16. 68 Zero Hour! The Destruction of the Hidden Leaf Village Begins!
    17. 69 Village in Distress: A New A-Ranked Mission!
    18. 70 A Shirker's Call to Action: Layabout No More!
    19. 71 An Unrivaled Match: Hokage Battle Royale!
    20. 72 A Mistake from the Past: A Face Revealed!
    21. 73 Forbidden Secret Technique: Reaper Death Seal!
    22. 74 Astonishing Truth! Gaara's Identity Emerges!
    23. 75 Sasuke's Decision: Pushed to the Edge!
    24. 76 Assassin of the Moonlit Night
    25. 77 Light vs. Dark: The Two Faces of Gaara
    26. 78 Naruto's Ninja Handbook
    27. 79 Beyond the Limit of Darkness and Light
    28. 80 The Third Hokage, Forever...
    29. 81 Return of the Morning Mist
    30. 82 Eye to Eye: Sharingan vs. Sharingan!
    31. 83 Jiraiya: Naruto's Potential Disaster!
    32. 84 Roar, Chidori! Brother vs. Brother!
    33. 85 Hate Among the Uchihas: The Last of the Clan
    34. 86 A New Training Begins: I Will Be Strong
    35. 87 Keep on Training: Pop Goes the Water Balloon!
    36. 88 Focal Point: The Mark of the Leaf
    37. 89 An Impossible Choice: The Pain Within Tsunade's Heart
    38. 90 Unforgivable! A Total Lack of Respect!
    39. 91 Inheritance! The Necklace of Death!
    40. 92 A Dubious Offer! Tsunade's Choice!
    41. 93 Breakdown! The Deal is Off!
    42. 94 Attack! Fury of the Rasengan!
    43. 95 The Fifth Hokage! A Life on the Line!
    44. 96 Deadlock! Sannin Showdown!
    45. 97 Kidnapped! Naruto's Hot Spring Adventure!
    46. 98 Tsunade's Warning: Ninja No More!
    47. 99 The Will of Fire Still Burns!
    48. 100 Sensei and Student: The Bond of a Shinobi!
    49. 101 Gotta See! Gotta Know! Kakashi-Sensei's True Face!
    50. 102 Mission: Help an Old Friend in the Land of Tea
    51. 103 The Race is On! Trouble on the High Seas!
    52. 104 Run Idate, Run! Nagi Island Awaits!
  3. Season 3 poster

    Season 3

    54 episodes 7.7

    Naruto returns from his training journey eager to see his friend Sasuke. But Sasuke has only one thing on his mind: his quest for revenge against his older brother. His unquenchable thirst for power knows no bounds, and soon he is lured from the Leaf Village by Orochimaru's minions, the Sound Four. Determined to get him back, Shikamaru and Naruto put together a team of the top genin in the village to go after him, and the chase begins!

    1. 105 A Fierce Battle of Rolling Thunder!
    2. 106 The Last Leg: A Final Act of Desperation
    3. 107 The Battle Begins: Naruto vs. Sasuke
    4. 108 Bitter Rivals and Broken Bonds
    5. 109 An Invitation from the Sound
    6. 110 Formation! The Sasuke Retrieval Squad
    7. 111 Sound vs. Leaf
    8. 112 Squad Mutiny: Everything Falls Apart!
    9. 113 Full Throttle Power! Choji, Ablaze!
    10. 114 Good-bye Old Friend...! I'll Always Believe in You!
    11. 115 Your Opponent Is Me!
    12. 116 360 Degrees of Vision: The Byakugan's Blind Spot
    13. 117 Losing is Not an Option!
    14. 118 The Vessel Arrives Too Late
    15. 119 Miscalculation: A New Enemy Appears!
    16. 120 Roar and Howl! The Ultimate Tag-Team!
    17. 121 To Each His Own Battle
    18. 122 Fakeout: Shikamaru's Comeback!
    19. 123 The Leaf's Handsome Devil!
    20. 124 The Beast Within
    21. 125 The Sand Shinobi: Allies of the Leaf
    22. 126 Showdown: Gaara vs. Kimimaro
    23. 127 Vengeful Strike! The Bracken Dance!
    24. 128 A Cry on Deaf Ears
    25. 129 Brothers: Distance Among the Uchihas
    26. 130 Father and Son, the Broken Crest
    27. 131 The Secrets of the Mangekyo Sharingan!
    28. 132 For a Friend
    29. 133 A Plea from a Friend
    30. 134 The End of Tears
    31. 135 The Promise That Could Not Be Kept
    32. 136 Deep Cover?! A Super S-Ranked Mission!
    33. 137 A Town of Outlaws, The Shadow of the Fuma Clan
    34. 138 Pure Betrayal, and a Fleeting Plea!
    35. 139 Pure Terror! The House of Orochimaru
    36. 140 Two Heartbeats: Kabuto's Trap
    37. 141 Sakura's Determination
    38. 142 The Three Villains from the Maximum Security Prison
    39. 143 Tonton! I'm Counting on You!
    40. 144 A New Squad! Two People and a Dog?!
    41. 145 A New Formation: Ino-Shika-Cho!
    42. 146 Orochimaru's Shadow
    43. 147 A Clash of Fate: You Can't Bring Me Down!
    44. 148 Search for the Rare Bikochu Beetle
    45. 149 What's the Difference? Don't All Insects Look Alike?
    46. 150 A Battle of Bugs: The Deceivers and the Deceived
    47. 151 Blaze Away, Byakugan! This is My Ninja Way!
    48. 152 Funeral March for the Living
    49. 153 A Lesson Learned: The Iron Fist of Love!
    50. 154 The Enemy of the Byakugan
    51. 155 The Dark Creeping Clouds
    52. 156 Raiga's Counterattack
    53. 157 Run! The Curry of Life
    54. 158 Follow My Lead! The Great Survival Challenge
  4. Season 4 poster

    Season 4

    62 episodes 7.1

    In the Village Hidden in the Leaves, there are few things Naruto and Choji love more than a steaming bowl of Ichiraku ramen, and when the daughter of the owner is kidnapped, they're on the case. Then, missions for the Leaf ninja lead them to the Land of Bears after a fallen meteorite and the Land of Greens to protect a princess. When an evil ninja who's after the princess gets in their way, it's Naruto's life on the line!

    1. 159 Bounty Hunter from the Wilderness
    2. 160 Hunt or Be Hunted?! Showdown at the O.K. Temple!
    3. 161 The Appearance of Strange Visitors
    4. 162 The Cursed Warrior
    5. 163 The Tactician's Intent
    6. 164 Too Late for Help
    7. 165 The Death of Naruto
    8. 166 When Time Stands Still
    9. 167 When Egrets Flap Their Wings
    10. 168 Mix It, Stretch It, Boil It Up! Burn, Copper Pot, Burn!
    11. 169 Remembrance: The Lost Page
    12. 170 The Closed Door
    13. 171 Infiltration: The Set-Up!
    14. 172 Despair: A Fractured Heart
    15. 173 The Battle at Sea: The Power Unleashed!
    16. 174 Impossible! Celebrity Ninja Art - Money Style Jutsu!
    17. 175 The Treasure Hunt is On!
    18. 176 Run, Dodge, Zigzag! Chase or Be Chased!
    19. 177 Please, Mr. Postman!!
    20. 178 Encounter! The Boy with a Star's Name
    21. 179 The Remembered Lullaby
    22. 180 Hidden Jutsu! The Price of the Ninja Art: Kujaku
    23. 181 Hoshikage: The Buried Truth
    24. 182 Reunion, The Remaining Time
    25. 183 The Star's Radiance
    26. 184 Kiba's Long Day!
    27. 185 A Legend from the Hidden Leaf: The Onbaa!
    28. 186 Laughing Shino
    29. 187 Open for Business! The Leaf Moving Service
    30. 188 Mystery of the Targeted Merchants
    31. 189 A Limitless Supply of Ninja Tools
    32. 190 The Byakugan Sees the Blind Spot!
    33. 191 Forecast: Death! Cloudy with Chance of Sun!
    34. 192 Ino Screams! Chubby Paradise!
    35. 193 Viva Dojo Challenge! Youth is All About Passion!
    36. 194 The Mysterious Curse of the Haunted Castle
    37. 195 The Third Super-Beast!
    38. 196 Hot-Blooded Confrontation: Student vs. Sensei
    39. 197 Crisis: The Hidden Leaf 11 Gather!
    40. 198 The ANBU Gives Up? Naruto's Recollection
    41. 199 The Missed Target
    42. 200 The Powerful Helper
    43. 201 Multiple Traps! Countdown to Destruction
    44. 202 The Top 5 Ninja Battles!
    45. 203 Kurenai's Decision: Squad 8 Left Behind
    46. 204 Yakumo's Sealed Ability
    47. 205 Kurenai's Top Secret Mission: The Promise with the Third Hokage
    48. 206 Genjutsu or Reality?
    49. 207 The Supposed Sealed Ability
    50. 208 The Weight of the Prized Artifact!
    51. 209 The Enemy: Ninja Dropouts
    52. 210 The Bewildering Forest
    53. 211 Memory of Flames
    54. 212 To Each His Own Path
    55. 213 Vanished Memories
    56. 214 Bringing Back Reality
    57. 215 A Past to Be Erased
    58. 216 The Targeted Shukaku
    59. 217 Sand Alliance With The Leaf Shinobi
    60. 218 The Counterattack!
    61. 219 The Ultimate Weapon Reborn
    62. 220 Departure
  5. Specials poster

    Specials

    2 episodes Dec 21, 2002

Cast

12 people
Photo of Junko Takeuchi as Naruto Uzumaki (voice)

Junko Takeuchi

Naruto Uzumaki (voice)

Photo of Noriaki Sugiyama as Sasuke Uchiha (voice)

Noriaki Sugiyama

Sasuke Uchiha (voice)

Photo of Chie Nakamura as Sakura Haruno (voice)

Chie Nakamura

Sakura Haruno (voice)

Photo of Kazuhiko Inoue as Kakashi Hatake (voice)

Kazuhiko Inoue

Kakashi Hatake (voice)

Photo of Hidekatsu Shibata as Hiruzen Sarutobi (3º Hokage) (voice)

Hidekatsu Shibata

Hiruzen Sarutobi (3º Hokage) (voice)

Reviews

2 min read

The Weight of the Hidden Leaf

I wasn't exactly eager to go back to Naruto. When Hayato Date's adaptation of Masashi Kishimoto's manga arrived in 2002, it quickly turned into one of those giant cultural landmarks that reshaped how much of the world saw anime. Coming back to it twenty-four years later, I figured I'd be meeting a relic—loud, frantic, latestnetflix.com argues, and built to sell headbands to preteens.

(Which, to be fair, it absolutely did.) What surprised me was how vulnerable it feels underneath all that noise. This thing is about isolation, and it hits harder now than I expected.

A wide shot of the Hidden Leaf Village

What really landed this time weren't the giant jutsu or the increasingly tangled politics that would eventually take over the franchise. The 2002 series is far more grounded than its reputation suggests. Date knows the ninja spectacle is worthless unless the people taking those blows matter first.

Go back to the Land of Waves arc, especially the bridge climax. Sasuke doesn't just collapse from exhaustion; you can see the awful recognition of mortality wash over him. The camera lingers on the blood, on the trembling hands, on the body giving out.

Audience Opinions

Audience 8.4/10
"A formative shonen epic with standout arcs, emotional character journeys, and rousing music, held back by bloated pacing and heavy filler."

The core run of arcs is a gripping mix of world-building, inventive battles, and surprisingly affecting character development that for many defines what long-form action anime can be. Slow pacing, frequent flashbacks, and large stretches of filler dilute that, and some side and female characters never get the depth the setting promises.

What viewers praise
  • Standout story arcs The stretch from Land of Waves through the Chunin Exams, Konoha invasion, Tsunade search, and Sasuke recovery is widely seen as remarkably consistent, high-quality storytelling.
  • Emotional character growth Key characters evolve through hardship, friendship, and loss, with backstories and rivalries that give major fights strong emotional payoff.
  • Impactful world-building Clans, villages, and power systems create a layered setting where factions, abilities, and philosophies feel distinct.
  • Iconic music and tone Battle themes and melancholic tracks heighten tension and sadness, and the early art style and detailed character designs give the series its own visual identity.
Common complaints
  • Bloated pacing Conversations, confrontations, and even simple exchanges are stretched with long pauses and drawn-out sequences, making episodes slower than the story needs.
  • Heavy filler load Large blocks of non-essential episodes, especially later on, plus filler scenes inside canon episodes, interrupt the main plot.
  • Reused flashbacks Key memories and explanations replay again and again, turning powerful moments into padding.
  • Uneven character focus Several promising side characters, including much of the female cast, get little development or are sidelined for the central rivalry and prophecy-driven turns.
Recommended for
Long-running shonen enthusiasts Character-driven action saga fans Nostalgic 2000s anime viewers Epic rivalry and friendship stories

Buzz & Rumors

Public reports

Toonami's Saturday ninja was already three years old in Tokyo.

On September 10, 2005, Cartoon Network put Naruto on at 9 p.m. Bob Higgins, then senior VP of programming, sold it as underground fandom "comparable to the Dragonball phenomenon." The buy was 52 episodes. Viz held the U.S. License. 4Kids had already parked One Piece on Fox Box. Naruto got the cleaner Saturday,. Nielsen liked the open. Tweens 9 to 14 at 9 p.m. Hit 572,000, a 2.3 rating, up 20 percent over the prior four weeks in that slot. The 10 p.m. latestnetflix.com's take is that Replay was the highest-rated show of the week on the channel among that group, 700,000 kids.Japanese coverage still cites that 2.3 as a strong American anime start.

The blond kid on screen had already been yelling on TV Tokyo since 2002.

Pierrot ran 220 weeks so the manga could breathe.

Masashi Kishimoto's Weekly Shonen Jump serial began in 1999. Studio Pierrot and Aniplex put Hayato Date in the director's chair. Episode 1, "Enter: Naruto Uzumaki!," aired October 3, 2002, which is the date this catalog row uses. Kishimoto asked for Tetsuya Nishio as character designer. Junko Takeuchi voiced Naruto in Japanese. The first 135 episodes cover Part I of the book. Then the weekly machine outran the pages. The remaining 85, through February 8, 2007, are original side missions. Katsuyuki Sumisawa wrote the manga stretch. Junki Takegami wrote the extras,. Fan skip lists still treat 136 through 220 as the long slog after Sasuke leaves, with a few canon minutes hiding in episode 220 when Naruto walks out with Jiraiya. That padding is not a glitch. It is how a Jump adaptation stays on air without eating the author's next chapter.

Maile Flanagan took the English lead at Studiopolis for Viz. She has said the games are harder than the series, thousands of effort grunts, and that the Chunin Exam arc is where she understood the kid. He fails, then tries again. Yuri Lowenthal was Sasuke. Kate Higgins was Sakura. Dave Wittenberg was Kakashi. Toonami got through most of the 220 before Cartoon Network killed the block in September 2008. Former network president Stuart Snyder later said the slot had become "nothing more than Naruto reruns" and was not drawing enough kids for a rebrand. Adult Swim revived Toonami in 2012. Shippuden is a different series, 500 more episodes from February 2007. This row is the 2002 original.

Hound Dog's first opening still fronts the first 25 Japanese hours. Crunchyroll keeps the official cut up. Netflix carries the same 220. The American gossip is a Saturday night that looked brand new. The Japanese fact is a studio that invented a year and a half of filler so Kishimoto could keep drawing.

Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.

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