You really wanna know? Damn you, nerds! First you make me through all of the kekki genkai (of which there are a zillion) to see which one is the strongest, then you forget your gun at home and need to know the meaning of each and every individual hand sign so you can use them to defend yourself!? there’s like a zillion of those too! Okay so there’s only like 12 but that’s still a lot of hand signs. Are you even going to be able to remember them all? Are you going to practice them while sitting on the train or waiting in line for a concert? Honestly, you better be. After I write this article I’m going out to get milk and when I come back you better be able to whip through all of these hand signs like the friggin’ greatest hokage or I’m gonna be pissed. So here they are, you asked for it, all of the Naruto hand signs explained.
Tiger
Okay let’s start with an easy one. It looks like you make a little church and steeple out of your hands. Or it could be the beginning of a lewd sex act. I don’t know, you decide. It’s based on the Chinese zodiac sign of (you guessed it) the tiger. The Tiger sign is used in conjunction with Fire and Earth releases. It’s also Sasuke’s most signature sign. Seriously, he does it all the time before breathing fire. Kid needs to be careful or his hands are gonna get stuck like that forever.
Snake
This is probably the easiest sign to perform, so if you can’t do it, you should probs just give up on your shinobi dreams right now. Be an architect, a painter, I don’t know. Also, if you have trouble performing this sign, you need Jesus. This is how you hold your hands when you pray like a good little Child of God. So if it feels unfamiliar, that means you’re probably gonna go to hell. But don’t worry! Just go to church and make the snake sign. Jesus won’t know the difference, I swear. This sign is also ironically kind of evil, because it was the snake that made Adam and Eve eat the apple off the tree of good and evil. Thanks guys, now we can’t hang out naked in the Garden of Eden with cute animals. The characters of Naruto have no doubt found Jesus though, because this handsign is used almost all the time in the series, primarily in conjunction with Water, Lightening, and Wood releases. Start using it now before Jesus starts sending some lightening of his own on you.
Ox
Ok this one is a little weird, and looks kinda metal to be honest. Like you could hold this up at a Metallica concert and everyone would probably think you’re pretty original and cool. Next time Metallic is playing near you, try it out and report back to me. That’s your ninja mission, get on it. The Ox sign is used primarily with fire techniques, and it’s Sasuke’s second favorite sign. His big brother Itachi is also a fan. The entire Uchiha clan seems to love it. It makes sense, they’re certainly one of the most metal clans in the Naruto universe. I mean their eyes can literally turn the color of blood and send people to realms of infinite darkness. I can’t imagine anything more metal than that, can you?
Ram
Okay this sign looks like someone was giving prayer a good ol’ college try but couldn’t quite get the hang of it. It’s cool though, still counts. Jesus still loves you. Well, likes you. You’re not on his shit list (yet). This might explains why Naruto is treated like such a pariah in the universe. It’s one of his favorite hand signs, he uses it all the time when summoning shadow clones, but to the other ninjas it must indicate that he hasn’t truly accepted Jesus into his heart yet. And how could he? He’s literally got a nine-tailed fox demon kicking around in there. I don’t think that he got the “leave room for Jesus” memo. Do better, Naruto. Your immortal ninja soul depends on it.
Rat
This is the hand seal for Rat. Gross. It kind of looks like you’re turning the two fingers of your left hand into a rat tail and grabbing it with your right. That’s unsanitary. Well, not really. Supposedly rats are very clean, but I think anyone living during plague times in Medieval Europe would argue otherwise. This hand sign isn’t used for nature releases, but is often used in conjunction with the shadow-bending techniques of the Nara clan. Shikamaru is doing it all the time. Someone please remind him to wash his hands.
Monkey
This handsign is arguably the chillest, and looks like you’re in the middle of giving yourself a slick low-five. And honestly, you should be, self love is important. If you worked hard this week, give it up for yourself. If you didn’t work at all this week, give it up for yourself even harder, because doing nothing but vibing is how we should all be living our lives honestly. I mean, that’s probably what heaven is like, right? Just sleeping on a cloud, swimming in the chocolate fountain, breathing in that pure holy air. I doubt God is gonna put any of heaven’s denizens to work, because that would honestly be a huge let down. This hand sign is another of Sasuke’s favs, and he uses it before performing his iconic chidori technique. Good on you Sasuke, practicing self-love and all. Honestly you need it, your family is pretty messed up after all.
Horse
Okay this is a hard one. Like what kind finger gymnastics is this? I can do it but it takes my a good ten seconds to get all my fingers in the right place. It’s kinda worth it though, because it is a pretty cool looking sign. I really don’t see the resemblance to a horse though. Like if I was a horse and you told me I looked like this I would donkey-kick you in the chest. Don’t mess with me, kid. I’ll put your eye out. It’s another favorite of Sasuke Uchiha’s (this kid really loves hand seals) and he uses it in junction with his fire techniques. The sign is also used for breaking genjustu, which is an array of techniques used to create illusions. If some smug ninja tries pulling the genjustu wool over your eyes, just use the horse hand sign to donkey kick your brain back into objective reality.
Dragon
This seal has one use and one use only. It makes things dragon shaped. And if that’s the case, why the hell aren’t characters using it all the time? If I had the choice creating a regular basic-bitch fireball or a dragon shaped fireball then guess what, I’d pick the dragon shaped fireball every time. I don’t care if it takes me an extra 20 seconds to mash my fingers into this weird ass shape. Riddle me with kunai knives while I’m doing it, I don’t care. Me and my dragon are coming for you if it’s the last thing we do. Honestly, Naruto should do it in conjunction with his “sexy justsu” technique. Distracting your opponent with sexy girls is one thing, but distracting them with sexy dragons would short circuit even the most disciplined ninja brain.
Dog
This sign is arguably the cutest. It looks like your turning your right hand into a little dog and petting it! So wholesome. It’s used in conjunction with a lot of Water and Ice Release techniques, which only makes sense, because dogs LOVE water and ice. Water makes sense, they can’t get enough of swimming in it, and honestly neither can I. They also love chewing ice cubes. It’s really cute. Like they’re gnawing a little frozen bone. Honestly I do the same thing, give me a glass of ice water and I will hand you back an empty cup. Does this make me a ninja? Not exactly. Does it help me train my teeth to be strong enough to catch flying daggers? Bet your ass it does.
Boar
Okay this hand sign is actually a really nice forearm stretch. Seriously, just do it right after you perform a forearm intensive activity like rock climbing or jerking off and you’ll see what I mean. This hand sign isn’t used for any nature release techniques, but it is used for summoning techniques. Summoning what, you ask? Giant toads, mostly. If you’re gonna stretch your forearms after doing the deed on yourself, make sure you put on pants first. Otherwise you might end up being oogled by a massive amphibian with an equally massive voyuerism kink.
Rooster
Okay what dipshit shinobi designed this handsign? Yes, it looks cool, but I cannot for the life of me tell which fingers are going where. Maybe I need to write a strongly worded email to the animation people at Pierrot because I don’t know what’s going on with Naruto’s middle and ring fingers. I guess this is what makes him the greatest Hokage, because he’s the one who does this hand sign the most. The rooster hand sign is used primarily for Wind Releases, and is a crucial component of Naruto’s signature Rasengan. Fly high Naruto, just like a rooster can’t.
Hare
This hand sign is pretty easy to make, after all, is utilizes one of my all time favorite gestures: the finger gun. To make this sign, all you have to do is make a finger gun with your right hand and tuck your pinky over it. Use it at the start of a battle or whenever you feel threatened to let your opponent know that you’d packing heat. If don’t back down, pull out your .357 Magum and give them six more reasons to. This sign isn’t used often, but when it is, the results are generally badass. It’s the sign used by Kakashi and Sasuke before they use the chidori. What’s the chidori? Oh nothing, just a little technique where you coat your fingertips in lightning and it crackles with the sound of a thousand birds. It’s no match for the aforementioned gun made famous by Dirty Harry, but it’s still pretty cool.
Featured image credit: Pierrot
