What the Naruto series has yet to do that DB excelled at was the dragging of fights over the course of 'Dozens' of episodes. One fight could last 20+ episodes. e.g. (Buu, Cell, Frieza). The Naruto series has had one major battle, which was Zabuza, they met two different times, and it only lasted a handful of episodes each time they met.

The Chuunin exam has lasted quite a long time, but that's to be expected when you have dozens of fights, one right after another. Most of those fights lasted one to two episodes each, some were less than a single ep. Honestly, do you remember how long some of the fights were in the tournaments during DB and DBZ?

I loved the DB series for what it was, and Naruto picks up on some of what DB taught us on how to advance the story, but it still doesnt drag on quite as much at DB just yet.