The Naruto original series has 5 seasons and 220 episodes which ran for 5 years between November 2002 to February 2007 when it ended. Throughout the five seasons, it was directed by Hayato Date and produced by Pierrot and TV Tokyo.
Meanwhile, Naruto is manga, a kind of Japanese comic series that follows the tale of Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who longs to rule his village as the Hokage and gain the respect of his fellow ninjas. Naruto’s preteen years are depicted in the first section of the story, which is followed by scenes from his adolescence.
While the attention of anime lovers was captured by the development of the season’s characters within the years it ran, its end came as a surprise. Thankfully, it was not long before its offshoots, Naruto seasons 6-9 and Naruto Shippuden were launched.
Naruto has a Total of 5 Seasons
1. Naruto ‘1st Stage’
With 57 episodes, the first season of the Naruto anime series was directed by Hayato Date and produced by Pierrot and TV Tokyo. It ran from October 3, 2002, to November 5, 2003, on TV Tokyo. Based on Masashi Kishimoto’s manga series, the season follows Naruto Uzumaki living in the Hidden Leaf Village, determined to become the next Hokage and gain the villagers’ respect.
The English dub ran from September 10, 2005, to November 4, 2006, on Cartoon Network’s Toonami programming block in the United States and YTV’s Bionix programming block in Canada.
2. Naruto ‘2nd Stage’
The second season of Naruto has 43 based on Masashi Kishimoto’s manga series, the season follows Naruto Uzumaki succeeding the Chūnin Exams only to discover the invasion of the Leaf Village. The second season aired from November 12, 2003, to September 29, 2004, on TV Tokyo.
The English dub aired on both Cartoon Network’s Toonami and YTV’s Bionix programming blocks from November 11, 2006, to August 19, 2007.
3. The ‘3rd Stage’
With 41 episodes, the third season of the Naruto anime series, titled “3rd Stage”. The season follows Sasuke Uchiha leaving the Hidden Leaf Village, with the hopes of gaining more power by joining up with Orochimaru. The season aired from September 15, 2004, to June 29, 2005, on TV Tokyo.
The English dub aired on both Cartoon Network’s Toonami and YTV’s Bionix programming blocks from August 25, 2007, to February 16, 2008.
4. The ‘4th Stage’
The fourth season of the Naruto anime series consists of 42 episodes and is titled “4th Stage” in Japan, is directed by Hayato Date, and produced by Studio Pierrot and TV Tokyo. The season follows Naruto and his friends assigned on different short missions after Sasuke Uchiha joins up with Orochimaru. The episodes aired in Japan from July 6, 2005, to May 3, 2006, on TV Tokyo.
The English dub was shown on both Cartoon Network’s Toonami and YTV’s Bionix programming blocks from February 23 to July 26, 2008.
5. The ‘5th Stage’
The last installment of the Naruto series comprises a total of 37 episodes, the fifth and final season of the Naruto anime series, titled “5th Stage” in Japan, is directed by Hayato Date and produced by Studio Pierrot and TV Tokyo. The season follows Naruto Uzumaki and his friends completing every assigned mission.
The season aired from May 10, 2006, to February 8, 2007, on TV Tokyo.
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The Series has Two Offshoots
Following the release of the last series of the original Naruto, two spinoffs, seasons 6-9 and Naruto Shippuden were launched a few months later in the same year. For the 6th to 9th seasons, they are fillers that many of the manga’s series fans agree one can skip to save time while delving into the sequel series Naruto: Shippuden, which aired on February 15, 2007.
Naruto: Shippuden has a total of 21 seasons. As of this writing, the last episode of Naruto Shippuden was aired in 2022 making it one of the longest-running anime series. However, it was announced that four new episodes would be aired to celebrate the series’ 20th anniversary.
The 21 seasons of Naruto Shippuden
- Season 1 – Aired from February 15, 2007, to October 25, 2007
- Season 2 – Aired from November 8, 2007, to April 3, 2008
- Season 3 – Aired from April 3, 2008, to August 14, 2008
- Season 4 – Aired from August 21, 2008, to December 11, 2008
- Season 5 – Aired from December 18, 2008, to June 4, 2009
- Season 6 – Aired from June 11, 2009, to January 14, 2010
- Season 7 – Aired from January 21, 2010, to March 11, 2010
- Season 8 – Aired from March 25, 2010, to August 26, 2010
- Season 9 – Aired from September 2, 2010, to January 27, 2011
- Season 10 – Aired from February 10, 2011, to July 28, 2011
- Season 11 – Aired from July 28, 2011, to December 28, 2011
- Season 12 – Aired from January 5, 2012, to August 16, 2012
- Season 13 – Aired from August 23, 2012, to January 10, 2013
- Season 14 – Aired from January 17, 2013, to July 4, 2013
- Season 15 – Aired from July 18, 2013, to January 30, 2014
- Season 16 – Aired from February 6, 2014, to May 8, 2014
- Season 17 – Aired from May 15, 2014, to August 14, 2014
- Season 18 – Aired from August 21, 2014, to December 25, 2014
- Season 19 – Aired from January 8, 2015, to May 21, 2015
- Season 20 – Aired from May 28, 2015, to October 13, 2016
- Season 21- Aired from October 20, 2016, to March 23, 2017
