How to Watch Naruto in Order: A Complete Viewing Guide (2024)

Nobody should ever say "there's not enough Naruto,"or "the series ended too soon." Besides its filler episodes, the hit anime property also has movies, OVAs and other material devoted to it. Counting Boruto, it's effectively ongoing, to this day. It's a lot to get through, so here's a collection of titles and dates to help out, as well as a recommended Naruto watch guide.

There are a few things to keep in mind, however. Although not everything fits cleanly into the Naruto timeline, as much as possible has been included. Thus, the recommended watch order for some items will be a mix of its chronological points in the Naruto history and official release dates. For the sake of completeness, Boruto-related properties are also included. NARUTO Spin-Off: is excluded as it really doesn't fit into Naruto continuity. Video game-related material is also kept ata minimum in order to categorize animated works. Release dates are based on their debuts in Japan. With those rules in mind, this is the recommended best order to watch Naruto.

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How to Watch Naruto in Order of Release

The original Naruto anime aired from Oct. 3, 2002, to Feb. 8, 2007, for a total of 220 episodes. Following a time skip, Part II of the story, Naruto: Shippūden, premiered on Feb. 15, 2007, which makes it seem as if the series started immediately after Naruto. However, there are at least two years of non-canon material between the two (the precise amount of time between Parts I and II). The series ended after 500 episodes, on Mar. 23, 2017. That marks the end of Naruto's adventures.

But his story is succeeded by that of his son in Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, which began on April 5, 2017. Bortuo has 242 episodes to date, and counting.

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Naruto Movies in Order of Release

One would think the Naruto movies could be divided based on which series was airing at the time. However, it gets complicated. Thankfully, it's easy to keep track of the first three Naruto movies. Naruto the Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow premiered on Aug. 21, 2004; Naruto the Movie: Legend of the Stone of Gelel on Aug. 6, 2005; and Naruto the Movie: Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom on Aug. 5, 2006. That trend of annual releases in late summer continues into the Shippūden movies.

The first Naruto: Shippūden movie, titled simply Naruto Shippūden the Movie, premiered on Aug. 4, 2007; Naruto Shippūden the Movie: Bonds on Aug. 2, 2008; Naruto Shippūden the Movie: The Will of Fire premiered on Aug. 1, 2009; Naruto Shippūden the Movie: The Lost Tower on July 31, 2010; Naruto the Movie: Blood Prison on July 30, 2011; and Road to Ninja: Naruto the Movie on July 28, 2012.

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The Last: Naruto the Movie, which arrived in theaters on Dec. 6, 2014, is set during the Blank Period. Unlike other Naruto movies, it was made to coincide with the events of the manga, which had just ended.

The release of Boruto: Naruto the Movie on Aug. 7, 2016, introduced Naruto's son, Boruto, as the main character. Naruto: Shippūden was airing at the time, although what would become the "Sarada Uchiha Arc" of Boruto : Naruto Next Generations had recently concluded.

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Naruto OVAs and Specials in Release Order

A number of Naruto OVAs and specials appeared throughout the franchise: "Find the Four-Leaf Red Clover!" premiered on Dec. 20, 2002; "Mission: Protect the Waterfall Village!" on Dec 20, 2003; and "Hidden Leaf Village Grand Sports Festival!" on Aug. 21, 2004.

Arriving on Dec. 22, 2006, the story of "Finally, a clash! Jōnin vs. Genin!! Indiscriminate Grand Melee Tournament Meeting!!" was meant to be completed in the Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 game. "Shippū! Konoha Gakuen Den!" premiered on Feb. 6, 2008; followed by Naruto: The Cross Roads on Dec. 19, 2009; "Naruto, the Genie, and the Three Wishes, Believe It!" on July 31, 2010; "Naruto X UT" on Jan. 1, 2011; and "Chūnin Exam on Fire! Naruto vs. Konohamaru!" on July 30, 2011.

Naruto Shippūden Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations OVA Madara vs. Hashirama arrived on Feb. 23, 2012, as part of the Naruto Shippūden Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations game for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. "Sunny Side Battle!" released on Sep. 11, 2014, alongside Naruto Shippūden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Revolution for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360. "The Ninja Escapades" premiered under the same conditions as "Sunny Side Battle!" "The Day Naruto Became Hokage" released on July 6, 2016, while Boruto OVA 1 premiered on July 27, 2017, distributed alongside Naruto Shippūden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Legacy.

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The Complete Naruto in Chronological Order

Watching the Naruto anime in chronological order is difficult, to say the least. The movies and OVAs don't always line up properly with the events of the manga. Sometimes, they happen at nonexistent junctions between arcs. A Shippūden OVA might flash back to the glory days of the original Naruto anime, despite being from Shippūden. That means it's best to watch the OVA apart from Naruto. A lot of these are non-canon material. Regardless, here's a general idea of when to watch all animated exploits of Naruto and company.

Naruto Watch Order for Prequel Material

The Madara vs. Hashirama OVA could arguably be watched first. Because it takes place well before Episode 1, it should be treated as a prequel. Or it can be watched after Naruto: Shippūden Episode 369. Similarly, "Ninja Escapades" can either be watched after Madara vs. Hashirama or after Episode 363 of Shippūden.

Following that should be the Kakashi Gaiden Arc, which encompasses Episodes 119 and 120 of Naruto: Shippūden. It can also be watched at the end of Part I, which is where it was shown in the manga.

Kakashi's story is expanded upon in Kakashi's Anbu Arc: "The Shinobi That Lives In The Darkness" (Episodes 349-361). As the name suggests, it covers Kakashi's time with the Anbu Black Ops. It also gives insight into the stories of Itachi Uchiha and the boy who would go on to be known as Yamato. The events of Itachi Shinden Book: Light And Darkness (Naruto: Shippūden Episodes 452-458) can also be watched around this time. The Childhood Arc of Naruto: Shippūden (Episodes 480-483) are also here for obvious reasons. They tell the stories of various characters from the Hidden Leaf Village from their early days.

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Start the Naruto Anime with Episode 1

The ideal starting point for the franchise is Episode 1 of the original Naruto anime. That episode, up to Episode 19, covers the Prologue -- Land of Waves Arc. Following that, "Find the Four-Leaf Red Clover!" and Naruto: The Cross Roads can be watched. A few more story arcs pass before any more additional content can be watched. First is the Chūnin Exams Arc (Episodes 20-67), followed by the Konoha Crush Arc (Episodes 68-80), and the Search for Tsunade Arc (Episodes 81-100).

After reaching Episode 100, one can watch a few more OVAs and a movie. "Mission: Protect the Waterfall Village!" is the first OVA, followed by "Hidden Leaf Village Grand Sports Festival!" Finally, there's "Naruto, the Genie, and the Three Wishes, Believe It!," which was coupled with Naruto Shippūden the Movie: The Lost Tower. But that's way in the future. Instead, one should continue on to Naruto the Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow.

Once all of that is done, proceed to Episodes 101-160. Naruto the Movie: Legend of the Stone of Gelel premiered some time between these episodes. However, for how events play out in the anime, it's best to save the movie until after Episode 160. Likewise, Naruto the Movie: Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom should be watched after Episode 196, as it premiered in the middle of the Third Great Beast Arc (Episodes 195-196). After that, watch until the end of Naruto (Episode 220) without stopping.

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The Best Order to Watch Naruto: Shippuden

After watching all the original Naruto, one can feel free to start viewing Naruto: Shippūden from Episode 1. The Kazekage Rescue Mission Arc (Episodes 1-32) can mostly be enjoyed without incident. One could watch "Shippū! Konoha Gakuen Den!" between Episodes 19 and 30, as it's based on the second ending of the anime (Michi ~ to you all), which plays over these episodes. Naruto Shippūden the Movie also aired while this arc was going on, so it should be watched next.

Then move on to the Tenchi Bridge Reconnaissance Mission Arc (Episodes 33-53). From here, watch Naruto Shippūden the Movie: Bonds. Following the movie is the Twelve Guardian Ninja Arc (Episodes 54-71), then the Akatsuki Suppression Mission Arc (Episodes 72-88). After Episode 88, turn to Naruto Shippūden the Movie: The Will of Fire. Technically, Bonds premiered closer to the Guardian Ninja Arc, while The Will of Fire dropped between the Kakashi Gaiden Arc (Episodes 119-120) and the Tales of Jiraiya the Gallant Arc (Episodes 127-133). However, the events of these two movies align better with the recommended episodes.

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Following The Will of Fire, watch Episodes 89-151. However, the next movie in the lineup, The Lost Tower, apparently takes place in the middle of the Pain's Assault Arc (Episodes 152-169 and 172-175). This is tough to fit into the timeline, because it apparently occurs between Naruto learning of Jiraiya's death and Pain destroying the Leaf Village. However, there's no canonical downtime between the two events. You can watch The Lost Tower at this point, but keep this potential inconsistency in mind.

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Blood Prison is, by far, the most frustrating movie to try and place. This movie features the Leaf Village before it was destroyed. However, Naruto, the Raikage, and Killer Bee all seem to know each other. This doesn't actually happen until at least Episode 243. It can't even be seen as something that happened during Naruto's training on Mt. Myoboku, as he's already mastered Sage Jutsu. The best compromise would be to watch this movie after Episode 175 and chalk up any chronological inconsistencies as minor oversights on the part of the writer(s); none of them have any profound effects on the story.

The Past Arc: The Locus of Konoha (Episodes 176-196) deals with events from the original Naruto anime. However, they're all framed as flashbacks from characters in the present day. They also cover various points in time. With that in mind, it's best to watch them starting after Episode 175.

Following that arc is the Five Kage Summit Arc (Episodes 197-214) and the Fourth Shinobi World War: Countdown Arc (Episodes 215-222). Somewhere between Episodes 216 and 220, one could potentially include Naruto X UT as an alternative to how the confrontation played out between Sasuke and Naruto. That said, it should be watched after the arc. Other OVAs that fit into this arc include "Chūnin Exam on Fire! Naruto vs. Konohamaru!" and "Sunny Side Battle!" A poster for Blood Prison can be seen in the background for Episode 222, making this another possible point to get started on that movie.

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From here, watch up to Episode 289 without any sidesteps. Episode 290-295 is the Power Arc, which likely also takes place during the time period of the Fourth Shinobi World War: Countdown Arc. Besides this, Episodes 223-311 can be watched straight through. Since Episode 311 is a prologue to Road to Ninja, this would be a good time to watch that movie, too. From there, Episode 349 is a straight path.

If you've already watched the Kakashi's Anbu Arc, skip ahead to Episode 362. "Ninja Escapades," if not watched before Naruto Episode 1, falls after Episode 363, then watch on until Episode 369. After this point, the Madara vs. Hashirama OVA can be watched if it hasn't been already. Going back to the main story leads to the Birth of the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki Arc (Episodes 378-388, 391-393, 414-421, and 424-431), followed by the Jiraiya Shinobi Handbook: The Tale of Naruto The Hero Arc (Episodes 432-450) and the Kaguya Ōtsutsuki Strikes Arc (Episodes 451-455, 458-468, and 470-479).

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What Is the Naruto Blank Period?

The Blank Period marks the time between Chapters 699 and 700. In the anime, it's represented by the characters growing a few years older. It begins with Episode 483 and continues to the end of the series. The Last: Naruto the Movie actually aired during the Birth of The Ten-Tails' Jinchuriki Arc, but it's best saved until Episode 493. This would place it right before Konoha Hiden: The Perfect Day For A Wedding (Episodes 494-500), the last arc of Naruto: Shippūden. This marks the official end of Naruto, and the start of Boruto.

Where to Start Watching Boruto

Chronologically, the first piece of Boruto media to watch is "The Day Naruto Became Hokage." Following that is the first episode of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations. At Episode 51, watch the first and only Boruto OVA. After Episode 52, the timeline branches between Boruto: Naruto the Movie and the anime. From here, one can watch Boruto up to its latest episode. Unlike Naruto and Naruto Shippūden, Boruto has far fewer filler episodes, so watching straight through is much easier.

The Boruto anime recently reached its first major hiatus, ending Part 1 of the series with Episode 293 on March 26, 2023. Part 2 has been confirmed, but there is no official release date at this time. In addition to the promised Part 2, however, it was announced shortly after that four new episodes of Naruto were set to air in October 2023. Where they fall into the timeline has yet to be confirmed.