A ninja village, a kid nobody wants around, and the fox sealed inside him. Naruto Uzumaki wants to be Hokage; most of the show is the long road to earning that instead of just wanting it.
Notes so far: the early arcs (Land of Waves, the Chunin Exams) hold up better than the later filler-heavy stretches. Worth watching for the fights around Zabuza and the Chunin Exam finals on their own.