Naruto Fillers – List of Naruto and Naruto Shippuden Fillers

Naruto is one of the most popular shonen anime to be ever made. Although “shonen” anime are generally targeted towards teens, they’re also well loved by adults, and Naruto, with its encouraging storyline and steady character development, is no exception.

The anime revolves around the titular character, Naruto, and his friends. Naruto was orphaned and treated as an outcast for unknown reasons for as long as he can remember. This leads him to develop a burning desire to become the Hokage or in other words, the leader of the Hidden Leaf Village to gain people’s acknowledgment.

Here’s a quick list of Naruto and Naruto Shippuden Fillers and a brief review on which bullets you should and shouldn’t dodge.

Naruto Fillers List

26, 53, 57, 97, 99, 101-106, 136-220

Naruto Shippuden Fillers List

6-7,11, 16, 19, 24-25, 28, 45, 49, 57-71, 90-112, 144-151, 170-171, 176-196, 223-242, 257-260, 271, 279-281, 284-295, 303-320, 347-361, 376-377, 385-386, 389-390, 394-413, 416, 422-423, 427-450, 464-468, 480-483

Now, I’m not against fillers but it’s just that most times, fillers break the smooth flow of the story and it’s only sometimes that they make us look forward to more.

The filler episodes in which Kurenai-sensei abandons her squad to seal away a dangerous genjutsu ability that spills into reality were good enough to be canon and absolutely necessary to show off her skills, especially after the fiasco with Itachi Uchiha.

There were also some hilarious fillers like the one in which team 7 tries to find out Kakashi’s identity, Ino’s impersonation of a chubby princess and the mission in which Aburame Shino laughs for the first time.

The last episode of Naruto was also considered a filler but it showed how much he cared for the promise he made to Sakura and just how much he values Sasuke’s friendship. The episode ends with him leaving the village to train with Jiraiya.

Naruto Shippuden kicks off with some serious action from the Akatsuki and fillers that don’t really classify as fillers. Even the episodes with the six-tail Jinchuriki, Utakata didn’t seem like a filler because of the Akatsuki’s involvement.

We don’t see any annoying fillers until after the Pain arc but not all of them were annoying. I especially liked the one in which Kakashi investigates Hanare because it was light and absolutely cute. For fans who make googly eyes at Kakashi, the episode was “aww”-worthy.

We also see a filler where Tenten shows off her weapon skills but sadly, her character still stays on the sidelines despite an impressive display of skills.

Fast forward to the Shinobi War arc, we’re shown how Sakura, Ino, Neji and the others cleared Chunin exams amidst some interesting battles.

After the Tsukuyomi, we’re shown everybody’s dream and how Tenten was the only one who figured out that it was not real. We get that those episodes were made to give her character some much-needed development and screen time. However, by the time Kishimoto did that, far more interesting battles had been unraveled and Tenten still seemed insignificant. The same goes for the Chunin exams arc.

Fillers that showed Kaguya’s history and the beginning of the rivalry between Indra and Ashura really helped to understand the plot and motivation behind the characters. Unlike the other fillers that breach the excitement, these fillers helped fuel it more.

The end of Naruto Shippuden did seem like a filler to me but as it turns out, it wasn’t. So, to conclude, some fillers were as good as canon and some fillers weren’t. The quick list above and this brief summary should help you decide which fillers to watch and which ones to skip.