Naruto Filler List: Every Episode You Can Skip

"Naruto" is one of the longest anime shows out there, and this can be partially attributed to the number of filler episodes. The essential anime based on the manga by Masashi Kishimoto follows the titular protagonist who aims to become the Hokage of his village despite being shunned and alienated. 

While the exact definition of "filler" in anime might change slightly depending on who you're talking to, in general, fillers are scenes, episodes, or arcs that are not present in the original manga a series is based on. "Naruto" has a total of 220 episodes, of which roughly 90 are reportedly pure filler. The reason such a big chunk of the show deviates from the main storyline is because the anime aired weekly and thus caught up to the manga on multiple occasions. To give breathing room for new content, Studio Pierrot animated original episodes, some stand-alone and others as full arcs. So, which ones are best left skipped?

"Naruto" fillers can get incredibly weird, but this one takes the cake. Titled "A Legend from the Hidden Leaf: The Onbaa!," Episode 185 sees a mythical creature fall on to Naruto's back and promptly become convinced that Naruto is its mother. After Tsunade explains what an Onbaa is and how it continues to balloon in size, Naruto is sent on a mission away from the village. After he completes his task, the mother Onbaa encounters and attacks Naruto, but the baby Onbaa — who is bigger than Naruto at this point — helps him before going off with its mother. As if the absurdity wasn't enough, Naruto returns to the village and sees all the other residents with Onbaas latching onto their backs.

Some other odd storylines can be found in Episode 192 ("Ino Screams! Chubby Paradise!"), where Ino serves as a double for a princess scared of meeting her fiancé due to her newly gained weight, or Episode 161 (The Appearance of Strange Visitors), in which imposters posing as Guy and Lee are forced on missions by Naruto, who is oblivious to their disguises. This ninja show went off the rails in other arcs, but these particularly bizarre stand-alone episodes are best avoided.

Fillers are, by definition, meant to stall and provide breathing room for the creator, but "Special Report: Live from the Forest of Death!" did so in the most boring way possible. By having Konohamaru and his friends interview Team 7 right before the second stage of the Chūnin Exams, the episode acts as a recap of information and scenes we already know. 

Fortunately, no other episode in the original "Naruto" series stalled as blatantly as this one, but viewers should beware of the anime's over-reliance on extended flashbacks. For example: The Mizuki Tracking Mission (Episodes 142 to 147) rewinds back to the very first episode. In the Land of Rice Fields Investigation (136–141), Naruto and Sakura are constantly thinking about their defeat in the previous arc, the Sasuke Retrieval mission.

One of the most frustrating things "Naruto" viewers in the pre-streaming era had to go through was an exciting stretch of episodes getting disrupted by fillers, as exemplified by Episode 101. In any other scenario, "Gotta See! Gotta Know! Kakashi-Sensei's True Face!" would be a pretty charming episode where Team 7 bond by trying to find out their sensei's face. It's funny, but the fact that it was placed after the fallout of Itachi infiltrating the village soured everything. Fans had to wait through this episode and five additional fillers before Naruto and Sasuke clash on the hospital rooftop. It was a serious momentum killer.

Episode 97 ("Kidnapped! Naruto's Hot Spring Adventure") is another one, as it disrupts the tense atmosphere generated by the action-packed episodes where Tsunade fights Orochimaru. Episodes 136-219 also break the flow of the transition into Part 2, pulling Naruto into random missions that detract from his hasty training journey with Jiraiya.

"Naruto" fillers usually have some sort of storyline that tries to explore different locations or parts of the lore, but this gag episode titled "Laughing Shino" is as unnecessary as it is odd. Naruto and Shino are sent on a mission to prevent Tsukiko from laughing at his father's wedding, or else the massive inheritance goes to his relatives as per the will. Before the funeral, Shino tastes food meant for Tsukiko, but it turns out that it's drugged with a substance that causes uncontrollable laughter. The rest of the episode has Naruto helping Tsukiko avoid laughing at the funeral in a drag costume. 

Seeing the stoic Shino's personality broken down might be hilarious, but the episode is devoid of any interesting development or progression. Episodes like these are plenty, and you should especially avoid Episode 168 ("Mix It! Stretch It! Boil It Up! Burn Copper Pot! Burn!"), Episode 174 ("Impossible! Celebrity Ninja Art: Money Style Jutsu!"), and Episode 177 ("Please, Mr. Postman!"). These types of fillers, where the world of the acclaimed fantasy show is not explored, are better left off unwatched.