Mission Cleared

Dropping by Ramen Ichiraku after a long absence, Naruto remarks that nothing about the shop has shifted, delighting Teuchi and Ayame, who invite him to order freely. Iruka then turns up and insists on covering the meal himself. Asked where Sakura is, Naruto admits he would have brought her had he known the treat was coming. Elsewhere, Sakura quietly regrets turning down his earlier offer to share half a bowl. In Sunagakure, Gaara throws up an Air Sand Protective Wall to blunt Deidara's C3 blast, sparing the village at the cost of enormous chakra, and Kankuro praises the effort expected of a Kazekage.

Deidara detonates a small clay bird against Gaara's defensive shell, but the sand keeps him safe. Baki learns the assault preparations are ready, and Gaara spots tiny clay ants crawling out of his own barrier. Deidara reveals that when Gaara crushed his arm earlier, he laced explosive clay into the sand, and he now sets the ant bombs off, blowing the shield apart. Meanwhile Tsunade and Shizune debate a mission for Team Kakashi, settling on a C-rank after Shizune frets over the Nine-Tails. Iruka bolsters a discouraged Naruto by reminding him that Jiraiya himself has been his private teacher. Drained to his limit, Gaara flings the protective sand clear of the village before Deidara captures him.

This episode belongs to the Kazekage Rescue Mission arc and covers manga chapters 248 and 249. It premiered in Japan on March 29, 2007, and reached English audiences on November 11, 2009. The opening theme is Hero's Come Back!! and the ending theme is Shooting Star ~Shooting Star~.