This is some history about "ninjas"
A ninja (忍者?) or shinobi (忍び?) was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations.[1] The ninja, using covert methods of waging war, were contrasted with the samurai, who had strict rules about honor and combat.[2]
In his Buke Myōmokushō, military historian Hanawa Hokinoichi writes of the ninja:
“They travelled in disguise to other territories to judge the situation of the enemy, they would inveigle their way into the midst of the enemy to discover gaps, and enter enemy castles to set them on fire, and carried out assassinations, arriving in secret.[3]”The origin of the ninja is obscure and difficult to determine, but can be surmised to be around the 14th century.[4] However, the antecedents to the Ninja may have existed as early as the Heian[5] and early Kamakura eras.[6] Few written records exist to detail the activities of the ninja. The word shinobi did not exist to describe a ninja-like agent until the 15th century, and it is unlikely that spies and mercenaries prior to this time were seen as a specialized group. In the unrest of the Sengoku period (15th - 17th centuries), mercenaries and spies for hire arose out of the Iga and Kōga regions of Japan, and it is from these clans that much of later knowledge regarding the ninja is inferred. Following the unification of Japan under the Tokugawa shogunate, the ninja descended again into obscurity.[7] However, in the 17th and 18th centuries, manuals such as the Bansenshukai (1676) — often centered around Chinese military philosophy — appeared in significant numbers.[8]These writings revealed an assortment of philosophies, religious beliefs, their application in warfare, as well as the espionage techniques that form the basis of the ninja's art. The word ninjutsu would later come to describe a wide variety of practices related to the ninja.
The mysterious nature of the ninja has long captured popular imagination in Japan, and later the rest of the world. Ninjas figure prominently infolklore and legend, and as a result it is often difficult to separate historical fact from myth. Some legendary abilities include invisibility,walking on water, and control over natural elements. The ninja is also prevalent in popular culture, appearing in many forms of entertainment media.
he origin of the ninja is based on the spies and assassins that have existed throughout Japanese history. The title ninja has sometimes been attributed to the semi-legendary 4th century prince Yamato Takeru.[16] In the Kojiki, the young Yamato Takeru disguised himself as a charming maiden, and assassinated two chiefs of the Kumaso people.[17] However, these records take place at a very early stage of Japanese history, and is unlikely to be connected to the shinobi of later accounts.
Yamato Takeru dressed as a maidservant, preparing to kill the Kumaso leaders. Woodblock print on paper. Yoshitoshi, 1886.The first recorded use of espionage was under the employment of Prince Shōtoku in the 6th century.[1] Such tactics were considered unsavory even in early times, when, according to the 10th century Shōmonki, the boy spy Koharumaru was killed for spying against the insurgent Taira no Masakado.[18]Later, the 14th century war chronicle Taiheiki contained many references to shinobi,[16] and credited the destruction of a castle by fire to an unnamed but "highly skilled shinobi".[19]
However, it was not until the 15th century that spies were specially trained for their purpose.[14] It was around this time that the word shinobi appeared to define and clearly identify ninjas as a secretive group of agents. Evidence for this can be seen in historical documents, which began to refer to stealthy soldiers as shinobi during the Sengoku period.[20] Later manuals regarding espionage are often grounded in Chinese military strategy, quoting works such as The Art of War (Sunzi Bingfa), by Sun Tzu.[21]Despite many popular folktales, historical accounts of the ninja are scarce. Historian Stephen Turnbull asserts that the ninja were mostly recruited from the lower class, and therefore little literary interest was taken in them.[14] Instead, war epics such as the Tale of Hōgen (Hōgen Monogatari) and the Tale of the Heike (Heike Monogatari) focus mainly on the aristocratic samurai, whose deeds were apparently more appealing to the audience.[12] Historian Kiyoshi Watatani states that the ninja were trained to be particularly secretive about their actions and existence:"So-called ninjutsu techniques, in short are the skills of shinobi-no-jutsu and shinobijutsu, which have the aims of ensuring that one's opponent does not know of one's existence, and for which there was special training."[15]
In his Buke Myōmokushō, military historian Hanawa Hokinoichi writes of the ninja:
“They travelled in disguise to other territories to judge the situation of the enemy, they would inveigle their way into the midst of the enemy to discover gaps, and enter enemy castles to set them on fire, and carried out assassinations, arriving in secret.[3]”The origin of the ninja is obscure and difficult to determine, but can be surmised to be around the 14th century.[4] However, the antecedents to the Ninja may have existed as early as the Heian[5] and early Kamakura eras.[6] Few written records exist to detail the activities of the ninja. The word shinobi did not exist to describe a ninja-like agent until the 15th century, and it is unlikely that spies and mercenaries prior to this time were seen as a specialized group. In the unrest of the Sengoku period (15th - 17th centuries), mercenaries and spies for hire arose out of the Iga and Kōga regions of Japan, and it is from these clans that much of later knowledge regarding the ninja is inferred. Following the unification of Japan under the Tokugawa shogunate, the ninja descended again into obscurity.[7] However, in the 17th and 18th centuries, manuals such as the Bansenshukai (1676) — often centered around Chinese military philosophy — appeared in significant numbers.[8]These writings revealed an assortment of philosophies, religious beliefs, their application in warfare, as well as the espionage techniques that form the basis of the ninja's art. The word ninjutsu would later come to describe a wide variety of practices related to the ninja.
The mysterious nature of the ninja has long captured popular imagination in Japan, and later the rest of the world. Ninjas figure prominently infolklore and legend, and as a result it is often difficult to separate historical fact from myth. Some legendary abilities include invisibility,walking on water, and control over natural elements. The ninja is also prevalent in popular culture, appearing in many forms of entertainment media.
he origin of the ninja is based on the spies and assassins that have existed throughout Japanese history. The title ninja has sometimes been attributed to the semi-legendary 4th century prince Yamato Takeru.[16] In the Kojiki, the young Yamato Takeru disguised himself as a charming maiden, and assassinated two chiefs of the Kumaso people.[17] However, these records take place at a very early stage of Japanese history, and is unlikely to be connected to the shinobi of later accounts.
Yamato Takeru dressed as a maidservant, preparing to kill the Kumaso leaders. Woodblock print on paper. Yoshitoshi, 1886.The first recorded use of espionage was under the employment of Prince Shōtoku in the 6th century.[1] Such tactics were considered unsavory even in early times, when, according to the 10th century Shōmonki, the boy spy Koharumaru was killed for spying against the insurgent Taira no Masakado.[18]Later, the 14th century war chronicle Taiheiki contained many references to shinobi,[16] and credited the destruction of a castle by fire to an unnamed but "highly skilled shinobi".[19]
However, it was not until the 15th century that spies were specially trained for their purpose.[14] It was around this time that the word shinobi appeared to define and clearly identify ninjas as a secretive group of agents. Evidence for this can be seen in historical documents, which began to refer to stealthy soldiers as shinobi during the Sengoku period.[20] Later manuals regarding espionage are often grounded in Chinese military strategy, quoting works such as The Art of War (Sunzi Bingfa), by Sun Tzu.[21]Despite many popular folktales, historical accounts of the ninja are scarce. Historian Stephen Turnbull asserts that the ninja were mostly recruited from the lower class, and therefore little literary interest was taken in them.[14] Instead, war epics such as the Tale of Hōgen (Hōgen Monogatari) and the Tale of the Heike (Heike Monogatari) focus mainly on the aristocratic samurai, whose deeds were apparently more appealing to the audience.[12] Historian Kiyoshi Watatani states that the ninja were trained to be particularly secretive about their actions and existence:"So-called ninjutsu techniques, in short are the skills of shinobi-no-jutsu and shinobijutsu, which have the aims of ensuring that one's opponent does not know of one's existence, and for which there was special training."[15]
