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NINJAS LICK PENIS
{{otheruses}}{{redirect|Shinobi}}

], ninja and title character of the ] ''Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari''.]]

In ], a {{nihongo|'''ninja'''|]]|ninja}} is a ], trained in ], and specializing in a variety of unorthodox arts of ]. The methods used by ninja included ], ], ], ], specialized weapons, and a vast array of ] were added after the 20th century. Arising from small farming communities, many ninja used weapons that would double as farming tools, such as the ]. Although the written history of ninja dates back to 15th century feudal Japan, the word and idea of a shadowy assassin first began to arrive in the west following the ] occupation of Japan. The mystique and allure of the ninja has helped the idea maintain popularity, both in eastern and western cultures, and has been used as a ] in everything from ] theater to major ].

== Etymology ==
''Ninja'' is the '']'' reading of the two ] 忍者 used to write ''shinobi-no-mono'' (忍の者), which is the ] for people who practice '']'' (忍術, sometimes erroneously ] as ''ninjitsu''). The term ''shinobi'' (] ''sino<sub>2</sub>bi<sub>2</sub>'' written with the ] 志能備), has been traced as far back as the late 8th century to a poem<ref name="takagi">Takagi, ] poem #3940; page 191</ref><ref name="satake">Satake, ] poem #3940; page 108</ref> to ]. The underlying connotation of ''shinobi'' (]) means "to steal away" and—by extension—"to forbear", hence its association with stealth and invisibility. ''Mono'' (], likewise pronounced ''sha'' or ''ja'') means a "person."

] script]]

The word ''ninja'' became popular in the post-] culture. 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."

Other terms which may be used include ] (お庭番 "one in the garden"), ''suppa'', ''rappa'', ''mitsumono'', ''kusa'' (草 grass) and ''Iga-mono'' ("one from Iga").

In ], the plural of ''ninja'' can be either unchanged as ''ninja'', reflecting the Japanese language's lack of ], or the regular English plural ''ninjas''.<ref>], 2nd ed.; ], 4th ed.; Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1).</ref>

== Historical period of origin ==

Ninja as a group first began to be written about in 15th century feudal Japan as martial organizations predominately in the regions of ] and ] of central Japan, though the practice of ] and undercover ] operations goes back much further.{{Fact|date=November 2007}}

At this time, the conflicts between the clans of '']'' that controlled small regions of land had established guerrilla warfare and ] as a valuable alternative to frontal assault. Since '']'', the ] code, forbade such tactics as dishonorable, a daimyo could not expect his own troops to perform the tasks required; thus, he had to buy or broker the assistance of ninja to perform selective strikes, espionage, assassination, and ] of enemy ]s.
There are a few people and groups of people regarded as having been potential historical ninja from approximately the same time period.

Though typically classified as assassins, however in his book ''Mystic Arts of the Ninja''{{Fact|date=September 2008}}<!-- ISBN please --> ] depicts them in armour similar to a samurai. Hayes also says those who ended up recording the history of the ninja were typically those within positions of power in the military dictatorships. According to Hayes and ]{{Fact|date=September 2008}}

<blockquote>
"'']'' did not come into being as a specific well defined art in the first place, and many centuries passed before ninjutsu was established as an independent system of knowledge in its own right. Ninjutsu developed as a highly illegal counter culture to the ruling samurai elite, and for this reason alone, the origins of the art were shrouded by centuries of mystery, concealment, and deliberate confusion of history."<ref>; last accessed ], ]</ref>
</blockquote>

A similar account is given by Hayes: "The predecessors of Japan's ninja were so-called rebels favoring ] who fled into the mountains near ] as early as the 7th century A.D. to escape ] and death at the hands of ]."<ref>; last accessed ], ]</ref>

== Historical organization ==
In their history, ninja groups were small and structured around families and villages, later developing a more martial hierarchy that was able to mesh more closely with samurai and the daimyo. These certain ninjutsu trained groups were set in these villages for protection against raiders and robbers.

Ninja museums in Japan declare women to have been ninjas as well. A female ninja may be '']'' (くノ一); the characters are derived from the strokes that make up the kanji for female (女). They were sometimes depicted as spies 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.{{Fact|date=December 2007}}

As a martial organization, it has been assumed that 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.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} For modern hierarchy in ninjutsu, see the article about ].

== Garb, technique, and image ==
{{Original research|date=September 2008}}
There is no evidence historical ninja wore all-black suits, called the "ninja-toyoi," in modern times, ] based upon dark colors such as dark red and dark blue is known to give better concealment at night. Some cloaks may have been reversible: dark colored on the outside for concealment during the night, and white colored on the inside for concealment in the snow.{{Fact|date=September 2008}} Some ninja may have worn the same armour or clothing as samurai or Japanese peasants.{{Fact|date=September 2008}}

The stereotypical ninja that continually wears easily identifiable black outfits ('']'') comes from the ].<ref></ref> 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 ], ninja characters also came to be portrayed in the theatre as wearing similar all-black suits. This either implied to the audience the ninja were also invisible, or simply made the audience unable to tell a ninja character from many prop handlers until the ninja character distinguished himself from the other stagehands with a scripted attack or assassination.

Boots that ninja used ('']''), 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.{{Fact|date=September 2008}} Ninja also attached special spikes to the bottoms of the boots called ''ashiko''.

The actual head covering suggested by Masaaki Hatsumi in his book ''The Way of the Ninja: Secret Techniques''{{Fact|date=September 2008}}<!-- ISBN please --> utilizes what is referred to as ''sanjaku-tenugui'', three-foot cloths. It involves the tying of two three-foot cloths around the head in such a way as to make the mask flexible in configuration but securely bound. Some wear a long robe, most of the time dark blue (紺色 ''kon'iro'') for stealth.

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

===Specialized weapons and tactics===

Ninja also employed a variety of weapons and tricks using ]. ] and firecrackers were widely used to aid an escape or create a diversion for an attack. They used timed fuses to delay explosions. ''Ōzutsu'' (]s) they constructed could be used to launch fiery sparks as well as projectiles at a target. Small "bombs" called ''metsubushi'' (目潰し, "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 would be blinded. Even land mines were constructed to use 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 '']'' (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 noticed.

A small ring worn on a ninja's finger called a '']'' would be used for hand-to-hand combat. The ''shobo'' would have a small notch of wood used to hit assailant's ] for sharp pain, sometimes causing temporary paralysis. A '']'' 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 on the palm-side and when the hand was thrust at an opponent using the longer piece of wood to target pressure points such as the ].

Some believe ninja used special short swords called '']'', or ''shinobigatana''. ''Ninjato'' are smaller than '']'' but larger than '']''. The ''ninjato'' was often more of a utilitarian tool than a weapon, not having the complex heat treatment of a usual weapon, and a straight blade. It should be noted there have been no actual ''Ninjato'' found, and their existence is purely speculative. In all probability, ninja used the standard swords of the time. 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.

The '']'' is a weapon that was barely ever used for throwing. It would be stuck into a wall or the ground to be used as a distraction, similar to ]. Shuriken were often used coated with poison so when in direct combat with another the ninja could throw the shuriken and have a more substantial effect than the minor physical injury (with potentially severe effects depending on the strength of the poison). Shuriken does not actually refer to a singular weapon, in actuality the word refers to the general group of a ninja's throwing weapons ie; ''shaken'' and '']'' and various sharpened conical or spike-shaped pieces of metal.

Many ninja disguised themselves as farmers so their weapons (the ], for example) could double as both weapons and farming implements.

==Modern organizations==
{{Main|Schools of Ninjutsu}}
There are several organizations currently purport to teach ninjutsu, or provide ] training. Claims of authenticity are disputed between organisations, with some sources stating that none of the modern schools have ] origins.<ref name=koryu>{{cite web
| last = Skoss
| first = Diane (ed.)
| coauthors = Beaubien, Ron; Friday, Karl
| title = Ninjutsu: is it koryu bujutsu?
| publisher = Koryu.com
| date = 1999
| url =http://koryu.com/library/ninjutsu.html
| accessdate = 2007-01-01
}}</ref>

== In popular culture ==
]
{{main|Ninja in popular culture}}
Ninja appear in both Japanese and ] fiction. Depictions range from realistic to the fantastically exaggerated with sources, including books, television, movies, videogames and websites portray ninja in non-factual ways, often for humor or entertainment.

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
{{refbegin}}

* {{cite book
| last = Takagi
| first = Ichinosuke
| authorlink =
| coauthors = Tomohide Gomi, Susumu Ōno
| title = Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei: Man'yōshū Volume 4
| publisher = Iwanami Shoten
| year= 1962
| location =
| pages =
| url =
| doi =
| id = ISBN 4-00-060007-9 }}
* {{cite book
| last = Satake
| first = Akihiro
| authorlink =
| coauthors = Hideo Yasumada, Rikio Kudō, Masao Ōtani, Yoshiyuki Yamazaki
| title = Shin Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei: Man'yōshū Volume 4
| publisher = Iwanami Shoten
| year= 2003
| location =
| pages =
| url =
| doi =
| id = ISBN 4-00-240004-2 }}
*{{cite book | last = Hatsumi | first = Masaaki | authorlink = Masaaki Hatsumi | title = Ninjutsu: History and Tradition | year = 1981 | month = June | publisher = Unique Publications | id = ISBN 0-86568-027-2 }}
*{{cite book | last = Turnbull | first = Stephen | authorlink = Stephen Turnbull (historian) | title = Ninja AD 1460-1650 | year = 2003 | month = February | publisher = Osprey Publishing | id = ISBN 1-84176-525-2 }}
{{refend}}

==External links==
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Revision as of 20:02, 22 October 2008

NINJAS LICK PENIS