Recaps

Jiraiya trained Naruto for the Chunin Exams, where Naruto fought Neji and later helped stop Gaara after the invasion began. After the Third Hokage died, Naruto prepared to travel with Jiraiya to find the next Hokage and met Yugito, another jinchūriki.

• Naruto trained with Jiraiya, learned to summon toads, mastered the Rasengan, and joined Team 7 on its mission to the Land of Waves.
• Naruto and Team 7 defeated Zabuza and Haku, helped the villagers drive off Gato’s men, and returned to Konoha after completing the mission.
• Naruto trained to resist genjutsu and entered the Chunin Exams, where he killed an Iwagakure ninja and fought Orochimaru in the Forest of Death.
• Naruto defeated Kiba in the preliminaries and Neji in the finals, while Sasuke fought Gaara as Sunagakure and Otogakure launched an invasion.
• Naruto pursued Gaara with Shino, Shikamaru, and Sakura, then summoned Gamabunta and helped force Shukaku back into Gaara’s seal.
• Naruto befriended Gaara, who left with Temari and Kankuro, while Hiruzen died after sealing Orochimaru’s arms.
• Jiraiya asked Naruto to travel with him to find the next Hokage, and Naruto met Yugito, who revealed that she was the Two-Tails jinchūriki.

Naruto returned to Konoha with Yugito, began a relationship with her, and helped secure an alliance before joining the mission to retrieve Sasuke. After Sasuke and Kabuto left Naruto for dead, Jiraiya secretly took him to Mount Myōboku for several years of training.

• Naruto and Yugito admitted their feelings, traveled to Konoha together, and Tsunade began arranging cooperation between their villages with Yugito as a possible liaison.
• Naruto completed his Wind Release training, became Yugito’s boyfriend, and received a promotion to chunin from Tsunade.
• After Sasuke defected, Naruto joined Shikamaru’s retrieval team, which split up to fight Orochimaru’s squad as Sasuke’s coffin continued toward Otogakure.
• Naruto fought Kimimaro, then confronted Sasuke at the Valley of the End and defeated him with the Nine-Tails’ chakra.
• Kabuto attacked the exhausted Naruto, and Sasuke struck him with Chidori before Kabuto threw him into the river.
• Kakashi found Naruto’s blood-soaked vest, leading Yugito to believe Naruto was dead, while Jiraiya secretly told Tsunade that Naruto had survived.
• Jiraiya took Naruto to Mount Myōboku, where Naruto learned that the toads had saved him and began preparing for years of training in sealing, the Rasengan, and Senjutsu.