Enough

Chunin exams~~ My opponent.

After the fight, I sit around, working on seals as Jiraiya teaches Naruto— who was complaining the whole time.

I make some more Hiraishin seals(I'd been spending all my free time these last few weeks to make more) after I was going to work the other seal from Jiraiya backwards.

It would be easier to just ask him, but I liked the challenge.

Eventually Jiraiya came and sat by me, pulling out a book and a pen.

We worked side by side with no words, not paying mind to the other.

I feel a poke in my side and I look up and see Naruto.

"How do you do this? I can't figure it out," he asked, he had a slight frown on his face and he was looking at the ground.

I jump up to my feet, walking over to where he has been working. I glance at Jiraiya as I walked, almost laughing at his scandalized face.

"I've never done a summoning Jutsu, but I've seen it used a few times. Show me what you do when you're summoning it." I instruct.

He does the hand signs, concentrating chakra to his hands at the end.

I shake my head, grabbing his hands, which were still in the boar symbol.

"When you gather the chakra to your hands, you don't need to push it out like you do with tree-walking. It can lie dormant but keep it centered in your hands. Also, you need to be focusing it in your hands for all the handsigns--  the release of the chakra only comes once you've finished the hand seals and are putting your hands down to summon the animal."

He nods uncertainly, and begins running through the hand seals again.

He only remembers to bring chakra to it during the middle, making his fingers fumble-- he starts over, focused.

He does slightly better, but doesn't quite summon anything more than the last few times.

I sigh, "Just keep working on it, it might be an issue of chakra control-- keep going though, you were able to gather the chakra -sorta- but you're still wonky."

I move to walk away but pause looking back, "Why don't you do some chakra exercises to help?"

He blinks at me and I blink back.

"Take some leaves, stick them to you in various places around your body-- once you get that you can try a heavier object, or you can practice the summoning Jutsu some more. At least that's what would make sense," I say grinning.

He nods energetically, running over to a tree and grabbing a bunch of leaves as I sat down again.

Before I start working again, I look up to Jiraiya, a question on my tongue.

"Hey... I had a question, if you don't mind answering," I say recalling his help offer earlier.

He hums, looking up from his notebook at me.

"For the final round of the Chunin exams, I don't know who I'm going to fight." I say, pausing while trying to figure out how to word it.

"I thought you guys got pre-picked opponents," he says before I could say anything else.

I nod, "There was an uneven amount, I'll be fighting someone Chunin rank or up-- knowing the Hokage it'll probably be a Jounin or something. I just... how do I?" I let out a frustrated sigh.

He places his arm on my shoulder, "Fight someone you don't know the capabilities of?" I nod slightly, and he lets out a small laugh ruffling my hair, "Sakura- that's your name, right?- don't you realize, that's what you've been doing. When you fought me-- and probably when you fought those other Ninja."