In the anime and manga series Naruto a jutsu (術, jutsu "technique" or "skill") is a general term referring to any technique a ninja might use that an ordinary human would likely be unable to naturally imitate. Jutsu often rely on the manipulation of chakra by various methods, the most common of which is hand seals. The hand seals consist of a combination of twelve-animal symbols that derive from the Chinese earthly branches.
In some cases the line between a simple action and a jutsu is blurred and vague, allowing for some humor (Naruto Uzumaki: "What? How did you get loose?!" Sasuke Uchiha: "Rope Untying Jutsu. It's basic stuff.").
So far, several hundred different jutsu have been revealed, which have slightly different names depending on the media in which they appear. The English versions of the Naruto manga and anime both use different names for the jutsu, which usually don't match the literal translation of the Japanese name for the jutsu. The English dub of the anime tends to leave the word "jutsu" untranslated, whereas the English manga translates it to "[jutsu name] Technique" or "Art of [jutsu name]."