You lead a quiet daily life as a farmer aiming to go unnoticed You’re an expert at veiling yourself among people But you also have a secret job few know about You wait for instructions for your next mission The assignment might come from the head of a strong regional family Samurai or a daimyo may also hire you to help carry out an attack against a competing warlord You receive an attack mission from a samurai family and you set out at once You move soundlessly through the mountain forest tracking your target You stay still as a rock to hide from your enemy You enter the icy water of a cold spring-fed stream without flinching These mountains are your home And you have learned to blend in with their surroundings so well that you’re nearly invisible Unlike the samurai who hired you you are not bound by honor and ceremony You know many devious methods to help you complete your mission You are a master at carrying out calculated attacks while hiding in plain sight The art of deception is your way of life You are one of history’s most effective warriors You are a ninja 5
CHAPTER 1 Hazy History Ninjas have existed in popular culture for hundreds of years But many aspects of their history are hard to confirm This is because ancient Japan has a strong history of oral tradition and spoken stories often vary in detail Additionally a ninja’s main function was to be secretive So there was little written about these warriors Because of this historians disagree on exactly how ninjas developed Ninjas first appeared in Japanese text in the 1300s war chronicle Taiheiki A major point historians argue over is how great an influence the Chinese were on ninja development Ninjas are a Japanese
JAPANESE PROVINCES OF THE HISTORIC NINJA SEA OF JAPAN KYOTO IGA KOKA JAPAN TOKYO PACIFIC OCEAN FEATURED AREA warrior group with roots in the Iga and Koka provinces However many Asian cultures studied ancient Chinese texts One important text was The Art of War It was written by Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu in the 400s or 300s BCE The Art of War influenced military strategy throughout Asia Many historians believe this text played a strong role in the formation of ninjas The military skills ninjas use emerged in Japan between the 600s and 900s CE Historians believe Chinese immigrants also influenced ninja culture When these immigrants began moving to Japan in the 1000s they brought their war tactics and philosophies with them Traces of these immigrant groups influences are found in ninja culture 7
