The Way Of The Ninja: Secret Techniques (Hardcover)

Book Description
A Ninja was someone whose very existence expressed the spirit of Budo. He would protect himself with techniques not of assassination but rather of sensation and an acute awareness of his natural surroundings. He would avoid unnecessary conflict, and even if armed with a blade, would find a way to win without staining it. These are the true techniques of Ninjutsu, and the art in which Ninja persistently trained.
Ninja exercised endurance throughout their secretive lives in order to protect their families, their clans, and their country. Their harsh training endowed them with a tough but pliant spirit, and martial skills suitable for coping with any situation, together with a sense of awareness that had universal application.

Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi, Ph. D, is the most famous Ninja grandmaster in the world today. In this book, he explains the essence, truth, and wisdom of Ninjutsu, an art of a thousand forms and innumerable variations. Through perceptive observations and many detailed pictures, the author reveals the hidden reality behind this mysterious and fascinating martial art. The Way of the Ninja will help widen readers’ perceptions and deepen their understanding of two essential principles. One is that Ninjutsu is the very backbone of the martial arts; the other, that Ninjutsu reveals their true spiritual significance.

From the Publisher
THE DEFINITIVE BOOK BY A LIVING NINJA GRANDMASTER

About the Author
Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi Born in 1931. After progressing through various martial arts, he found his life’s mentor, Takamatsu Toshitsugu, and studied under him for the next fifteen years, becoming 34th Grandmaster of Togakure-ry¯u Ninjutsu and eight other arts, which he unified into the Bujinkan system. While traveling the world, teaching thousands of individual students as well as law enforcement agencies, he received numerous accolades from politicians and spiritual leaders of many nationalities. He has also worked as a professional osteopath, acted in a popular television series, and as the author of many books on Ninjutsu, was for many years Chairman of the International Department of the Japan Literary Artists’ Club.

Ben Jones After winning a scholarship to Oxford University to study Japanese, he moved to Japan and trained in the Bujinkan, interpreting for Dr. Hatsumi at seminars around the world. Former head of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting’s Japanese Network, he now runs a successful translation and typesetting business from his home in Kent, UK.

Review: A personal philosophy on the martial art of ninjutsu
Masaaki Hatsumi would have us believe that the ninja are/were an intense, inner-focused group more intent on developing their spiritual strengths and discipline than being involved in any sort of assassination or waring. He claims that the ninja opposed bloodshed of any kind, and "would avoid unnecessary conflict, and even if armed with a blade, would find a way to win without staining it."

This spiritualist portrayal of ninja is distinctly at odds with historically focused books such as Stephen R. Turnbull's "Ninja: The True Story of Japan's Secret Warrior Cult," which show the ninja as remote clans who specialized in spy work, assassination, infiltration and castle-breaking. Hatsumi's ninjas are surely not the same as Turnbull's, who's favored technique was to sneak into a castle, set the storehouses on fire, and send the castle dwellers fleeing into the waiting swords of the Samurai army.

Ah, but this is Hatsumi's book, and he obviously has enough clout to say what he likes. He is the Grandmaster of the last remaining ninja school, with accolades enough from every possible martial arts society as well as the FBI. Also, as he puts forth plainly in "The Way of the Ninja," one should not apply scientific thought to ninjas. They should be felt and experienced, not researched and reasoned about.

Although the book is subtitled "Secret Techniques," it is much more about Hatsumi's philosophy than active martial arts. The text is overflowing with his personal musings on things as varied as diet, art, the role of martial arts, personal pride and boasting, wealth, how to properly tie a ninja mask, and pretty much every other topic. His thoughts are free-form, drifting from topic to topic with little linear logic. According to the translator's note, this is very typical of Hatsumi's writing, as he feels that a reader should make discoveries on his own, rather than be told directly.

There are martial techniques in the book. Scattered about are photo-layouts showing various maneuvers. Not being a budoka myself, I am not sure how valuable these are to learning the techniques presented. I assume this is more of an introduction than an actual training manual, to give interested parties a feel to what they can learn from Hatsumi's tutelage. The photos are excellent, and I wish I could see some of them in action.

All in all, probably the most complete text available on the martial art of ninjutsu, but not something that will give insight into the historical ninja or the role they played in Japanese history. But there are other books that provide that. "The Way of the Ninja" has a unique insight, a personal touch lacking in historical text. Hatsumi is a man who has lived the life of a ninja, and preserved an intense physical lifestyle and tradition to pass onto future generations.

Review: Good book
Maasaki Hatsumi is definitely the real thing (unlike Ashida Kim) and this book doesn't disappoint. It is informative and enjoyable to read. You won't be able to train or learn techniques from the book (for that, find a good instructor) but you will come away with an understanding of what Ninjitsu is and was.

Hatsumi's book is more philosphical and spiritual, focusing on the essence of this historical art.

Review: The First of Three Important Books by Hatsumi Sensei,
This book is the first in a series of three important books by Hatsumi Sensei. The first two have been written and released within the last five years, the third one will be released soon.

1. The Way of the Ninja
2. Advanced Stickfighting
3. Japanese Kenjutsu

I might be wrong about the title of the third book as it has not been released, but that is the subject. These books are filled with amazing photographs and some pretty high-level concepts in the text.
These books contain secret techniques that a non-Bujinkan student may have trouble deciphering.

In any event, there is much truth and wisdom written in between the lines and I cannot recommend them highly enough. Honestly, there really aren't any other authors that are worth reading when it comes to this subject. If you want to study real ninjutsu, start with these books)

Review: Good book, Great Photographs
There is little I can say about how in awe I am of this books photographs and insights. A meld of Hatsumi sensei's words and actions, its a recommended addition to any ninjutsu library collection.

Review: The Complete Story
Dr. Hatsumi is possibly the most famous Ninja grandmaster in the world today. In this book he explains the essence, truth, and wisdom of Ninjutsu, an art of a thousand forms and innumerable variations.

A Ninja, in ancient Japan was not the hired assassin of the movies, but a feudal warrior assigned to protect their families, their clans, and their country. Harshly trained they developed a tough but pliant spirit, and martial skills suitable for coping with any situation. He would avoid unnecessary conflict, and even if armed with a blade would find a way to win without staining it. The basic creed was to win without conflict. Continual fighting requires that you must win all the time, one failure (with Japanest swords) was likely your last. The true skill of the Ninja was to survive.

Here is the story of the Ninja told in a combination of writing and photographs that deliver the essence of the Ninja way of life.

Secrets from the Ninja Grandmaster : Revised and Updated Edition (Hardcover)


Book Description
Secrets of the Ninja Grandmaster is a collection of heart-to-heart lessons from ninja grandmaster Masaaki Hatsumi to his senior student and first American disciple, Stephen K. Hayes. When this book was first published in 1987, it gave Western martial artists their first chance to learn what the grandmaster himself had to say about the essence of warrior training that emphasized real-world battlefield fighting methods (jissen-gata) - from the use of weapons to ninja invisibility to kuji warrior spirituality - as opposed to art or sport. This important volume is now available once again through Paladin Press, with an all-new epilogue and a techniques section that illustrates various classical ninja fighting defenses. This is essential reading for every martial artist who has ever wanted to go beyond the stereotypical images of the ninja sensationalized in action-adventure movies and gain access to the true secrets of the ninja grandmaster.

About the Author
Stephen K. Hayes was inducted into the prestigious Black Belt Hall of Fame for his years of pioneering work in introducing the Japanese ninja martial art to the American public. Hayes was awarded the extremely rare Ju-dan Tenth Degree Black Belt license by grandmaster Masaaki Hatsumi of Chiba-ken, Japan. He is the founder of the martial art of To-Shin Do, a contemporary mind and body self-protection system based on ancient ninja martial arts principles updated and adapted for application to modern threats and pressures. Masaaki Hatsumi trained with grandmaster Toshitsugu Takamatsu for 15 years and was granted the title of soke (lineage head) for the nine martial arts that he learned from Takamatsu Sensei. Hatsumi was inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame in 1986. His many books on the history, philosophy and methods of the Japanese martial arts have been translated into several languages.

Review: A Welcome Return of a Great Classic
I was delighted to see this in print again. If you have any interest in what the art of ninjutsu is about, this book will give you keen insights and serve as a great teaser to find out if one of hatsumi's students os teaching near you.
One of the catchy characteristics of this book is that is is for the most part the transcript of a meeting that Hayes and his wife had with Hatsumi over 12 years ago, back in 1986. Its new conclusion is a modern transcript of a meeting that the three had a year ago.

You will especially enjoy this book if you have trained with Hatsumi or his more skilled students. I would also recommend his other books, along with Stephen Hayes' books. Please take the time to look into getting Stephen Turnbull's books on Japanese martial arts. They are very well done and well illustrated!

A real gem! Enjoy!

Review: The Welcome Return Of An Old Classic
Palladin Press has certainly done an outstanding job of reissuing a definite classic in the canon of Ninpo books. The harcover edition is built for endurance, a thankful thing in my dog-eared library of martial arts texts.

If you've never experienced authentic ninjutsu before (because there are certainly plenty of fraudulent hucksters out there purporting to teach the real thing) then this book might confuse you at certain points, given the interesting taped-conversation transcripts that make up the bulk of this tome. At certain times, Hatsumi-sensei seems to say things which are contradictory to other statements he's made in the past. Fools will say this simply proves the man is nothing but a fraud. People who have known Hatsumi-sensei and experienced the true nature of this art will understand that such spoken contradictions are merely another aspect of what may well be the most comprehensive and fascinating system of self protection available anywhere. Hatsumi-sensei teaches quite a lot when he talks...and even more when he doesn't.

Most interesting to me was the updated chapter "Twelve Years later" which brings both Stephen K. Hayes and Masaaki hatsumi together once again in the recently opened Hombu Dojo to discuss the world of their art since the original conversations in 1986. Hatsumi-sensei once again has a great deal of important things to say - things that a lot of people should listen very carefully to. Having been over at the Hombu Dojo with a group of friends back in February of this year made the chapter all the more stirring for me.

There are some illustrated techniques at the end of the book, but the draw for me was to have this book to replace the beaten-to-hell Xeroxed copy I made from another friend's book, since I couldn't find this years ago. I'm glad to have the book itself now, made all the better with the updated chapter and excellent hardcover edition.

Don't miss this book!

Review: Words to live by
Most people would consider days of listening to an old man drone on about his elders and his life's work to be boring, but this is Masaaki Hatsumi, the 34th Grandmaster of Togakure-ryu ninjutsu. In this book he is interviewed by Stephen K. Hayes, the man known for bringing the art of the ninja to the Western world.

In a series of conversations, Hatsumi discusses his own training experiences, his views on the art as it was hundreds of years ago as well as today, and his philosophy on life in general. It is sometimes hard to follow him for two reasons: his words are translated and he's doing it on purpose. Hatsumi doesn't answer questions, he asks them and urges you to find the answers yourself.

While not as informative, in a technical sense, as other works by Hatsumi or Hayes, this book is full of valuable insight for the curiosity seeker, amateur practitioner/student, or someone with experience in the art. Reading the book felt like sitting in the room as Hatsumi and Hayes spoke, seemingly holding nothing back. Not the best thing either of them have done, but something you won't want to pass up if you have an interest in this subject.

Each chapter is an interview conducted in 1986, and the new chapter in the revised edition is a recent interview. There is also a combat technique section at the end, which is amazing if you've never seen examples of Hatsumi's style. Looking at the pictures, it seems as if he's barely moved from one frame to the next as he effortlessly counters different attacks, armed and unarmed.




The Mystic Arts of the Ninja (Paperback)

Book Description
Ninja . . . that single word conjures up images of mystery and power. The ability to move swiftly and silently, to mesmerize one's victim, to strike infallibly, and then to disappear into the night--this is the legend of the ninja. These nearly sorcerous aspects of the ninja, as well as the exotic weapons they use, are the focus of The Mystic Arts of the Ninja. Its author, Shidoshi Stephen K. Hayes, is the sole American to be granted teaching credentials by the 34th grandmaster of the Togokure School of Ninjutsu in Japan. Going beyond the basic conditioning and training techniques of his best-selling Ninjutsu: The Art of the Invisible Warrior, Hayes explains the most sought after secrets of his ninja training:

Hypnotism: Saiminjutsu, the ninja's hypnotic powers are described and explained. Sample exercises are provided to help develop your hypnotic powers.
Invisibility: Stealth walking and camouflage are discussed. Hayes provides examples of how to move silently across various kinds of terrain and how to blend into your surroundings to become invisible.

Weaponry: The Hanbo cane, the sword, and the infamous shuriken throwing stars are ninja trademarks. Hayes fully describes their use in grappling as well as in attacking.
More than 400 black-and-white photos are used to illustrate the secrets and techniques that have been used by the ninja to surprise and outwit their foes over the past 800 years. The authenticity of Shidoshi Hayes's instruction is perhaps the most important aspect of this book: no other book represents the true ninja tradition.

Facts about Ninjas
From Wikipedia
Ninja
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.

This article refers to the Japanese spies and assassins known as "Ninjas". For other uses, see Ninja (disambiguation)
Some information in this article or section has not been verified and may not be reliable.
Please check for any inaccuracies, and modify and cite sources as needed.
Ninja (??, Ninja?) are agents of espionage and assassination of Japanese extraction in legend, popular fiction, and satire.

Plays, stories, film, and ironic depictions of ninja have been extremely popular throughout history.

Etymology
Ninja is Sino-Japanese compound derived from the two kanji (Japanese characters of Chinese origin) used to write shinobi-no-mono (???), one of the native Japanese words for people who practice ninjutsu (sometimes transliterated as ninjitsu). Ninja and shinobi-no-mono, along with shinobi, another variant, became popular in the post-World War II phonetically with the kanji ???, has been traced as far back as Japan's Asuka period, when Prince Shotoku is alleged to have employed one of his retainers as a ninja.

The underlying connotation of shinobi (?, pronounced nin in Sino-Japanese compounds) is "to do quietly" or "to do so as not to be perceived by others" and—by extension—"to forebear," hence its association with stealth and invisibility. Mono (?, likewise pronounced sha or ja) means "person." The nin of ninjutsu is the same as that in ninja, whereas jutsu (?) means skill or art, so ninjutsu means "the skill of going unperceived" or "the art of stealth"; hence, ninja and shinobi-no-mono (as well as shinobi) may be translated as "one skilled in the art of stealth." Similarly, the pre-war word ninjutsu-zukai means "one who uses the art of remaining unperceived."

Historical period of origin
The Ninja originated from small groups of villages defending themselves against feudal Samurai.

The ninja's original use of guerilla tactics against better armed enemy samurai and their eventual use as hired spies does not mean that they were limited to espionage and undercover work, that is simply where their actions most drastically differed from the more accepted tactics of samurai. Their weapons and tactics were partially derived from the need to conceal or defend themselves quickly from Samurai, which can be seen from the similarities between many of their weapons and various sickles and threshing tools used at the time. [1]

Ninja as a group first began to be written about in 15th century feudal Japan as martial organizations predominately in the regions of Iga and Koga of central Japan, though the practice of guerilla warfare and undercover espionage operations goes back much further. At this time the conflicts between the clans of daimyo that controlled small regions of land had established guerilla warfare and assassination as a valuable alternative to frontal assault. Since the samurai code forbade such tactics as dishonorable, a daimyo could not expect his own troops to perform the tasks required, and thus had to buy or broker the assistance of ninja to perform selective strikes, espionage, assassination, and infiltration of enemy strongholds (Turnbull 2003).

There are a few of people and groups of people regarded as having been potential historical ninja from approximately the same time period.

Stephen K. Hayes, an American recognized as an instructor of ninjutsu by the 34th Grandmaster of Tokugare Ninjutsu, says that the ninja were a "manifestation of a unique set of cultural, economic, religious and social pressures".

Though typically classified as assassins, many of the ninja were warriors in all senses. In Stephen Hayes' book, "Mystic Arts of the Ninja", Hattori Hanzo, one of the most legendary ninja, is depicted in armor similar to that of a Samurai. Hayes also says that those who ended up recording the history of the ninja were typically those within positions of power in the military dictatorships, and that students of history should realize that the history of the ninja was kept by observers writing about events as seen from the outside.

Historical organization
Early in their history, ninja groups would have been small and structured around families and villages, later developing a more martial hierarchy that was able to mesh more closely with that of samurai and the daimyo.

While ninja are often depicted as male, and nearly all military and related professions were typically limited exclusively to males, females were supposedly ninja as well. They were sometimes depicted as prostitutes who learned the secrets of an enemy by seduction; though it's just as likely they were employed as household servants, putting them in a position to overhear potentially valuable information. In either case, there is no historical support for the modern image of female ninja assassins, and they were more likely employed as spies and couriers.

As a martial organization, ninja would have had many rules, and keeping secret the ninja's clan and the daimyo who gave them their orders would have been one of the most important ones.

For modern hierarchy in ninjutsu, see: Ninjutsu

Modern Organization in Fiction
Upon receiving a mission from daimyo, the jonin would use the chunin to select necessary personnel from among the genin.

Stories say that leaving a ninja clan without authorization and with no intention of returning is a severe crime as a result of the knowledge that any fugitive ninja would know about their group. The fugitive would be called nukenin (???, nukenin?) and his clan members might be ordered to bring him back, dead or alive.

Historical garb
There is no evidence that historical ninja limited themselves to all-black suits. Instead it is more likely that they often wore the same armor or clothing as samurai or japanese peasants.

The stereotype of ninja continually wearing distinctive black outfits (shinobi shozoku) comes from the Kabuki theater. [2] Prop handlers would dress in black and move props around on the stage. The audience would obviously see the prop handlers but would pretend they were invisible. Building on that willing suspension of disbelief, ninja also came to be portrayed in the theatre as wearing similar all black suits. This either implied to the audience that the ninja were also invisible, or simply made the audience unable to distinguish a ninja from the many prop handlers until the ninja distinguished himself from the others in the play by attacking. The most successful ninja took advantage of this culturally-specific context to assassinate members of the audience.

Another fact that suggests the absence of any standard ninja outfit or easily identifiable weaponry is that if caught or seen any recognizable weapons or clothing would have marked them as enemies, which would have resulted in capture, torture, and probably execution. Good ninja would have sought to avoid recognition, capture, and death. Thus, these spies and assassins were far more likely to be disguised as samurai, priests, or peasants rather than as ninja. Depending upon the circumstances, dark green, brown or dark blue outfits would have been more likely to have been used to camouflage with their surroundings, whereas wearing black from head to toe would only have been truly useful when avoiding all light sources completely. However, the garb of the most successful ninja can only be guessed at, as the undetectable remain undocumented.

Ashida KimDisguises were selected on the basis of their unobtrusiveness in a given environment. Some ninjas were said to have disguised themselves as Fuke monks and used the traditional flute of the zen sect, the Shakuhachi, as a powerful blunt weapon. Many government agents and ninja disguised themselves as komuso, since one could travel about in complete anonymity and gather information. There were even short pieces that were supposed to be played by one komuso greeting another. These suizen melodies tended to be very difficult to outsiders of the sect. If the second komuso did not respond, the first would know that the other was probably a spy. One known tool used by ninja is irogome (literally, "colored rice"). Irogome was uncooked rice seeds colored in five or six different colors: red, black, white, yellow, blue, and sometimes brown. They would be placed on the ground or handed to a ninja from a ninja. Each combination carried certain meanings like "all clear" or "an enemy check point is ahead".

Ninja boots (jika-tabi), like much of the rest of japanese footwear from the time, have a split-toe design that improves gripping and wall/rope climbing. They are soft enough to be virtually silent.

Modern costume
The actual head covering suggested by stoke Masaaki Hatsumi (in his book The Way of the Ninja: Secret Techniques) is called the 'Way of the Three Cloths'. It involves the tying of three cloths, each three foot in length, around the head in such a way as to make the mask flexible in configuration but securely bound.

Beginning in the 1980s, children and adolescents would improvise a 'ninja mask' with a dark-colored t-shirt. By turning the t-shirt inside out, placing the neck-hole over the eyes, and tying the sleeves behind the head, the identity of the wearer is disguised. In recent times, instructions for this process have been found on the internet. [3]

Associated equipment
The assassination, espionage, and infiltration tasks of the ninja led to the development of specialized technology in concealable weapons and infiltration tools.

Tools and weapons
Ninja are said to have made use of weapons that could be easily concealed or disguised as common tools, the bo, and handclaws (shuko, neko-te tekagi) probably being the most famous, except for the amazing shuriken (throwing stars), popularized by comic book mail order advertisements. Kunai (a gardening tool) were also a popular weapon as they could be hidden easily or carried if the ninja was disguised as a gardener. It was the equivalent of a utility knife, often used to pry or cut rather than fight. The makibishi (tetsu-bishi), a type of caltrop made of iron spikes, is also famous. It could be thrown on the ground to injure a pursuer's feet or thrown out on an enemy's escape path so that the targets could be cut down or shot down with bows and arrows while they looked for another escape route, but it could also be covered with poison so the victim would die slowly.

In popular folklore, ninja also used special short swords called ninja-ken (or ninja-to see below for explanation), or "shinobigatana" (Note the avoidance of the term 'ninja', but inclusion of the term shinobi, a synonym). Ninja-ken are smaller than katana but larger than wakizashi. The ninja-to was often more of a utilitarian tool than a weapon, not having the complex heat treatment of a usual weapon. Another version of the ninja sword was the shikoro ken (saw sword). The shikoro ken was said to be used to gain entry into buildings, and could also have a double use by cutting (or slashing in this case) opponents.

Specialized weapons and tactics

a ninjutsu kickNinja also employed a variety of weapons and tricks using gunpowder. Smoke bombs and firecrackers were widely used to aid an escape or create a diversion for an attack. They used timed fuses to delay explosions. Ozutsu (cannons) they constructed could be used to launch fiery sparks as well as projectiles at a target. Small "bombs" called metsubushi (???, "eye closers") were filled with sand and sometimes metal dust. This sand would be carried in bamboo segments or in hollowed eggs and thrown at someone, the shell would crack, and the assailant blinded. Even land mines were constructed that used a mechanical fuse or a lit, oil-soaked string. Secrets of making desirable mixes of gunpowder were strictly guarded in many ninja clans. Other forms of trickery were said to be used for escaping and combat. Ashiaro are wooden pads attached to the ninja's tabi (thick socks with a separate "toe" for bigger toe; used with sandals). The ashiaro would be carved to look like an animal's paw, or a child's foot, allowing the ninja to leave tracks that most likely would not be tracked. Also a small ring worn on a ninja's finger called a shobo would be used for hand-to-hand combat. The shobo(or as known in many styles of ninjutsu, the shabo) would have a small notch of wood used to hit assailant's pressure points for sharp pain to sometimes cause temporary paralysis (see pressure points). A suntetsu is very similar to a shobo. It could be a small oval shaped piece of wood affixed to the finger by a small strap. The suntetsu would be held against a finger (mostly middle) on the palm-side and when the hand was thrusted at an opponent, the longer piece of wood would be used to hit the pressure points.

Ninja are attributted with originating the style ninjutsu, which has similarities with jujutsu and kenjutsu. Ninjutsu (or Ninpo) closely resembles jujutsu, in that it uses the enemy's momentum and force against him, and in its usage of joint manipulation and leveages against the wrist, knee, shoulder, etc. There is very little blocking in most styles of ninjutsu, with the emphasis relying on evasionary movements. Such a technique might include simply dropping underneath a punch and striking the groin.

Historical myths about ninja
There are many myths and legends concerning ninja. Their special abilities are also often exaggerated, among them becoming invisible, multiplying themselves, turning into animals, jumping over buildings, the ability to fly, stick to the walls and foresee the future. These myths were caused by the secretive nature of ninja, and confusion with Tengu and yamabushi. The myths of these abilities would have been reinforced by the actions of ninja during their operations, such as calling forth from nearby a previously unseen ninja ally upon being discovered, which could eventually have led to stories of multiplication abilities. Ninja encouraged rumors that made people believe they had magical powers to increase their advantage of fear and surprise in the event of discovery or combat.

At least one ninja was recorded to have faked his own death to later create the illusion that he had risen from the dead and was thus unable to be killed.[citation needed]

Ninpo (??, Ninpo?) refers to various skills used by ninja, but mostly supernatural and fictional. Ninja are said to have actively encouraged such superstitions about their abilities to inspire fear in their enemies.

In modern fiction
Main article: Ninja in popular culture
Ninja appear in both Japanese and Western fiction. Depictions range from realistic to the fantastically exaggerated

Western popular culture generally depicts ninja as supremely well-trained martial artists and assassins, clad in head-to-toe black or dark blue suits, using many kinds of exotic equipment and skills to accomplish their missions. Western fascination with the ninja bloomed in the 1980s, especially in the United States. The idea of a Westerner being granted entry to the secret ranks of the ninja has long been a subject of particular fascination for Western writers. For example, The Ninja (1980) series of thriller books by Eric Van Lustbader features a half-Japanese, half-Caucasian character who received ninjutsu training in his youth. The Japanese rhythm and blues band, Thee Michelle Elephant, wanted to release a three hours, five disc fictional concept album devoted to popular Sunday morning ninja fighting themed anime show, Aknito and Mr. Saito. The album was scrapped after the show was suddenly cancelled in 1997. However, Mr. Saito(Aknito's mentor) was given his own show on TV Asahi (the fourth biggest cable network in Japan) and proved to be a big success. Despite being disbanded, Thee Michelle Gun Elephant provides voices for Mr. Saito's new students: Anrito, Deeku, Snarfasu, and Rivayama.

Many ninja spoofs pit them against pirates and ask which would win in a Pirates versus Ninjas fight. Modern ninja are also often (paradoxically) depicted as both expendable redshirts (when they attack in large numbers) and as nearly invulnerable opponents (when one or a small groups attack). A good example of this paradox in action can be found in the American Ninja and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies, where the protagonists (ninja) easily defeat waves of incompetent enemy ninja on multiple occasions, only to have far more trouble when facing the more competent lone ninja. This also led to the satirical Inverse Ninja Law. In response to this, the NHPO (Ninja Honor Protection Organization) was created in late 2005 to protect the image of the ninja, primarily by requesting that video games, movies, and comic books stop using ninja as disposable characters.

In books
The Japanese novelist, Ryotaro Shiba wrote a novel and a collection of short stories, based on ninja, called Fukuro no Shiro and Saigo no Igamono. Both were made into successful movies.

In movies
Ninja-based films and books became a popular culture craze in Japan during the 1950s and early 1960s. As a result, a TV series called The Samurai was created in 1962 to cash in on the fad. Although only seen in Japan and a few other countries, the series was notable for its screening in Australia in 1964-65, as it was the first Japanese TV show ever broadcast there. The Samurai rapidly became one of the most popular programs ever screened on Australian TV, gaining a large audience among pre-teen children; its success even led to star Ose Koichi and a troupe of performers touring there in a specially-produced show in 1966. The series introduced the ninja concept to Australian audiences and the ninja soon became a cult favourite, with children dressing up as ninjas and making their own toy ninja weapons, notably the shuriken or "throwing stars". Several American ninja movies starring Sho Kosugi were released in the 1980s as well. Kosugi is to be in the upcoming movie The Return of the Ninja, which is to be released in 2007. Sam Firstenberg's American Ninja, a low budget movie released in 1985, was undoubtely the most successful film in the genre produced by an American company, Cannon. Former model Michael Dudikoff, who played the lead character Joe Armstrong, was dubbed as "the James Dean of the Ninja movies". The story depicts the adventures of an amnesiac soldier who discovers he had received ninja training when was a child. Eventually, he uses his skills against a drug lord in the Philippines. The movie proved to be a smash hit, and spawned four sequels: American Ninja 2: The Confrontation, American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt (Dudikoff was replaced by David Bradley here), American Ninja 4: The Annihilation (Dudikoff and Bradley are paired together in this one), and the straight-to-video American Ninja 5 (a spin-off aimed at children). The first two American Ninja are regarded as cult classics.

Perhaps the first cinematic mixing of two martial arts 'worlds' occurs in the Hong Kong movie Ninja in the Dragon's Den, in which a young Ninja flees to China - both to evade the revenge of the clan he's betrayed and to seek one of the men he believes responsible for his father's death - and encounters a young Kung fu fighter in combat.

In the early 90's there were two ninja based movies involving 3 young boys who come to live with their grandfather. While there, he teaches them ninjutsu and they get into a mess of trouble and must use their skills to get out of them. The first was simply titled, "3 Ninjas", with the sequal being "3 Ninjas Kick Back".

In TV
The Master was a ninja action adventure TV series which aired in 1984 on NBC. The show starred Lee Van Cleef as John Peter McAllister, an aged American verteran & ninja master who returns to the United States in search of a daughter he didn't know he had. Timothy Van Patten as Max Keller, his young short tempered pupil. Sho Kosugi as Okasa, McAllisters former pupil who has sworn to kill his former master for his abandonment of the ninja code. The short lived series only lasted 13 episodes before it was cancelled.

When G.I. Joe, a traditional American series of military action figures, was relaunched in the 1980s, the collection included a few ninja characters such as Snake-Eyes, a Vietnam war veteran who studied the ninja arts after the death of his family, and Storm Shadow, a member of a clandestine ninja clan. The massive popularity of the ninja characters completely overtook the more conventional army characters, and creator Larry Hama was pressured by Hasbro to create more ninja for the series.

Two seasons of Power Rangers had ninja-based powers and zords: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers season 3, and Power Rangers Ninja Storm, respectively based on the two Super Sentai series' Ninja Sentai Kakuranger and Ninpuu Sentai Hurricanger.

The smash hit animé series, Naruto, is the most famous ninja-themed animé worldwide. It is the story of a young boy who is training to be the top ninja of his village, the Hokage, and to finally receive recognition. To do this, Naruto must rise through the ranks of genin, chuunin, and jounin, and complete many trying missions. Based on the manga by Kishimoto Masashi, the series touches every aspect of ninja, including the weaponry, as well as the use of special techniques and strange powers combined with martial arts. Naruto is currently around episode 200 and the manga currently has about 36 volumes. There are also 3 movies, and the show is not letting up any time soon. The franchise has spawned many video games, gadgets, toys, toy weapons, and more.

Yet another animé series, Basilisk, utilizes the mythology and such behind the ninja, giving them strange powers and jutsus to carry out missions. In this show, there are two rival ninja clans who have been coexisting soley because of a peace treaty. Two ninja, one from each clan, were to marry. They had hoped this would allow the clans to make peace among the members, but when the treaty was expired, a new proposal was put foreward. The names of 10 elite ninja from each clan were put on a hit list for the other clan. The first clan to kill all 10 people are the supreme clan. The two lovers must now face the reality of the war and come to grips that both of their names are on the lists.

In video games
In fighting games, ninja are typically quick to strike but lack power and defense.

One of the most successful games ever on the Commodore 64 computer was The Last Ninja, developed by System3. In the Nintendo Entertainment System games titled Ninja Gaiden, the player takes the role of Ryu Hayabusa, a ninja whose clan has been savagely murdered. Ryu is also a character in the Dead or Alive fighting games that feature multiple ninja characters.

Sega's Shinobi, Shadow Dancer and Revenge of Shinobi were popular video games of the 1980s featuring the ninja Joe Musashi. In keeping with the idea of magical ninja powers, Musashi could perform a smart bomb attack using magic in the former two games and could use other forms of magic in the latter.

Mortal Kombat, one of the most popular fighting games ever created, included several ninja-like characters with supernatural powers which seem to have been exaggerated from ninjutsu-related techniques or literature. In a similar game series called Soul Calibur, there is a character named Taki which can use a skill that gamers call the ninja cannon where Taki jumps high into the air then lands a distance away, an obvious exaggeration of ninjutsu.

In the RPG Final Fantasy III (Famicom), near the end of the game is possible to get two new jobs, one being the Ninja ("The supreme Warrior") and the other being the Sage ("The supreme spellcaster"). The FF3 Ninja was able to equip any kind of weapon, offensive item or armor (except the Rusty Armor), and also had the best attributes such as speed, stamina, life and others. An exaggeration about the Ninja's power in the game is the power shuriken (Throwing star), portrayed as the strongest piece of weapon in all the game (About twice stronger as Excalibur and Ragnarok combined), and considered a must against the final boss, who has lots of HP. However, those are scarce and rare to find, and a secret NPC sells them for 65000 gold each, making it the most expensive weapon in all the game and probabily one of the most (relatively) expensive ammunition ever seen in a game. A noticeable quirk is when using the throwing stars is about their number. You can equip up to two throwing stars, being one in each hand, and they disappear after use. However, when "using them", is possible to throw several stars at a time (up to 99, using Haste or having a really high level) at the cost of just one or two stars. It can be a simple hardware limitation or, less probabily, other exaggeration about the Ninja powers by throwing more stars than he has in his hands. However, this is supported by the fact that only a ninja in the game can wield a shuriken, and the fact they are sold at a really high price by a sage, can implify those throwing stars are embeeded with some kind of magic.

In the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI it is possible to get a new job as a Ninja. With this job you get more magic (known as Ninjutsu in game) and the ability to dual wield weapons. Also, in the Final Fantasy video games and movies exists a character named Yuffie. She is a shuriken wielding kunoichi.

There are various fighting games based off of the Naruto television series. This show is an entirely ninja-themed anime, so all of the characters in the game are able to use martial arts, traditional ninja weaponry, and special techniques and such that are common in ninja mythology.

Tenchu is a popular stealth game series involving ninja. Although it incorporates sword-fighting as part of the game, the most important aspect is stealth, or sneaking around and getting rid of an enemy silently without calling attention.

In the game James Bond 007: Nightfire, the evil Phoenix Corporation uses ninjas as assasins. In one mission, the player must fight a ninja that just killed a traitor in Phoenix (for those who have the game the mission is Double Cross), and in another mission numerous ninjas lunge at the player while inside a space shuttle launch silo. Rodrigo is the most skilled ninja in the world.

On the Web
There have been innumerable popular websites dealing with ninja, the three with the largest following: Real Ultimate Power (which was made into a book), Ninja Burger (which was made into an RPG, card game and book), and Ask A Ninja, (which features weekly podcasts themed at asking ninja-based questions).

References
Hatsumi, Masaaki (June 1981). Ninjutsu: History and Tradition. Unique Publications. ISBN 0-86568-027-2.

Turnbull, Stephen (Feb 2003). Ninja AD 1460-1650. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-525-2.