The Search for the Rare Bikōchū Beetle

Hinata, Shino, and Kiba stop by the hospital to see their bedridden sensei Kurenai. When Hinata drifts too near a frustrated Naruto, who is fuming over Mizuki's failure to steer him toward Sasuke or Orochimaru, she loses her composure and collapses. Naruto has been badgering Tsunade for permission to launch a search of his own, and Hinata, sympathetic to his plight, wants to find some way to help. Shino raises the idea of the bikochu, an exceptionally uncommon insect capable of locking onto Sasuke's trail once it catches his scent.

Because Kurenai remains laid up with wounds from the recent prison break, Shino takes command of Team 8 for the outing, and Naruto signs on as an extra fourth member. The episode also reveals that Hinata has been perfecting a fresh defensive skill and has nearly mastered it. Training bare at a waterfall after dark, she is glimpsed by Naruto, who fails to realize who she is. He tumbles into the water, and by the time he surfaces she has slipped away unidentified.

Come morning, Naruto cheerfully describes the stunning stranger he encountered to Kiba, mortifying Hinata in the process. Reaching the region where the bikochu is said to dwell, the squad has no idea that the Kamizuru clan is combing the very same area in pursuit of the beetle. This entry falls under the Bikochu Search Mission arc and premiered in Japan on August 17, 2005, reaching English audiences on March 15, 2008.