This book is apparently a bible for students of ninjutsu. The author, Masaaki Hatsumi, is the grandmaster of a ninja tradition that stretches back 34 generations.

The book briefly outlines the history of the ninja and ninjutsu – a bit too brief for my liking, as I would have liked to have known more. I haven’t found any really long books/articles (particularly scholarly ones) that address the history of the ninja. Hatsumi says in the book that even in Japan ninja history has been glossed over, although ninjas are very much present in popular Japanese culture (Naruto!).

He then goes on to illustrate several ninjutsu unarmed and armed combat techniques, explaining at length the traditional weapons of the ninja. He also goes into “special training” – non-combat techniques that involve ambushing tactics, water-crossing, explosives, etc. The last section briefly talks about female ninja, or kunoichi, and the more mystical aspects of ninjutsu – kiai (energy attuning) and the kuji-in, which are the mystical hand symbols that have been interpreted as hand seals that mix and channel chakra in Naruto.

Overall I felt I had gained some insight into the reality of ninjutsu after reading this book, though I would have liked it to be much longer and detailed, particular for the non-technique sections. If anyone has suggestions for books to turn to after this one, please leave me a message!