Naruto is one of the most successful anime series of all time, inspiring millions of people around the world. The pre-time-skip Naruto series focuses on Naruto’s childhood and his early ninja days. If you are planning to start watching the Naruto series but completing only the canon story is your main goal, we have you covered with our Naruto filler list. Keep reading to discover and skip the fillers to get the most out of your Naruto viewing experience.
How Many Filler Episodes Are in Naruto?
True to its name, this anime series chronicles the journey of Naruto, a young ninja from the Hidden Leaf village. He is a problematic and unruly child who is despised by the villagers due to a strange power that resides within him. As a result, Naruto aspires to become a great ninja and, ultimately, the next Hokage (leader of the village).
The classic Naruto series comprises 220 episodes, of which 91 are filler episodes. That means 41% of the original Naruto series is nothing but filler. This plethora of filler episodes and arcs can be skipped if you’d like to quickly wrap up the protagonist’s childhood story. We have summarized and created a Naruto filler list for you right below.
List of Naruto Filler Episodes Worth Watching
Naruto (2002-2007) includes the following filler arcs and episodes, as listed below. Additionally, we have mentioned whether you should skip a filler episode or not. But it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to watch all the fillers we have marked as worth watching.
The filler episodes that are marked as “Watch” below are considered entertaining by the fans, so they might be worth checking out if you’re not short on time. You can see the fun and quirky side of our loved characters in these episodes. The list is as follows:
| Naruto Filler Episodes or Arcs | Episode Numbers | Should You Watch or Skip it? |
|---|---|---|
| Recap of the First 25 Episodes | 26 | Skip |
| Attempting to Recover Tsunade’s Debt | 97 | Skip |
| Trying to Discover Kakashi’s Face | 101 | Watch |
| Land Of Tea Escort Mission | 102-106 | Skip |
| Land Of Rice Fields Investigation Mission | 136-141 | Watch |
| Mizuki Tracking Mission | 142-147 | Skip |
| Bikochu Search Mission | 148-151 | Watch |
| Kurosuki Family Removal Mission | 152-157 | Watch |
| Gosunkugi Capture Mission | 159, 160 | Skip |
| Cursed Warrior Extermination Mission | 162-167 | Watch |
| Kaima Capture Mission | 169-173 | Watch |
| Daimyo Heir Escort Mission | 174 | Skip |
| Buried Gold Excavation Mission | 175, 176 | Skip |
| Stopping The Courier Ninja | 177 | Skip |
| Star Guard Mission | 178-183 | Skip |
| Kiba, Naruto, and Shino One-Off Episodes | 184-186 | Skip |
| Peddlers Escort Mission | 187-191 | Watch |
| Ino’s Princess Disguise Mission | 192 | Skip |
| Rock Lee’s Dojo Challenge | 193 | Skip |
| Daimyo’s Wife Search Mission | 194 | Skip |
| Third Great Beast Arc | 195, 196 | Watch |
| Konoha Plans Recapture Mission | 197-201 | Watch |
| Recap of Top Five Battles | 202 | Skip |
| Yakumo Kurama Rescue Mission | 203-207 | Skip |
| Prized Artifact Escort Mission | 208 | Skip |
| Gantetsu Escort Mission | 209-212 | Watch |
| Menma Memory Search Mission | 213-215 | Watch |
| Sunagakure Support Mission | 216-220 | Watch |
| Total | 91 |
That concludes our complete list of filler episodes in Naruto. Although it is widely regarded as one of the greatest anime series of all time, we suggest watching the canon episodes first, which focus on the canon story, before focusing on the filler episodes or arcs.
The decision to watch the filler episodes ultimately comes down to personal preference. We hope our filler guide has helped you determine which filler arcs to watch or skip, much like our One Piece filler arcs guide. So, let us know about your favorite Naruto episode in the comments below.
In one way, all the filler episodes in the Naruto anime series are easily skippable. But if you are down to kill some time, you can watch them for sure. We have marked the fillers worth watching in our Naruto filler list, which you can check out in this guide.
Among the 220 episodes, nearly 41 percent (91 episodes) are filler in the Naruto anime series. While the initial half of the anime is manga canon, the fillers start around the 100th episode and continue to stack in the following arcs. So yeah, it is easier to follow the filler list and dodge the non-canon episodes with ease.
To preserve the gap between the anime and the current manga, the animation studio produced these filler episodes, much like all the other anime series out there. That is the chief reason for Naruto’s numerous filler episodes.
