The Ninja: Understanding Strategy & Tactics

Ninjutsu is the "invisible art," quite different then "art of invisibility;" ninjutsu is about things done in secret. Things invisible to the observer or enemy, ninjutsu is espionage, sabotage, assassination, scout craft & skirmish (commando style) tactics. Ninjutsu is more then camouflage & sentry removal. Its the tactics of espionage & the strategy of clandestine warfare. The goal of ninjutsu is to win the battles & thereby the wars before one fights.

The use of Skirmish forces is not completely unheard of among Samurai Ryu or Sengoku Period tactics. Surely, the use of skirmish tactics is not specifically ninjutsu related. No the use of Ninjutsu/Shinobijutsu was in finding the routes the Bushi would take to infiltrate enemy terrain & strike suddenly before fading away. Such a mission may require the shinobi contact an informant, capture an enemy for interrogation, sabotage enemy defenses, provide false maps or simply infiltrate the camp to gather continued intelligence.

Ninjutsu is more then espionage; spy-craft is a fun subject but it has little usage without a direct strategy where it would be required for usage. Take my last few blog posts; Full Disclosure, Full Disclosure II & An Open Letter to Jonathan Russell. Even a video posted today serves a linkage to all three; I'm still Here on YouTube;

The facts remain as to how I infiltrated your criminal organization; I addressed this back in October of 2012 with my Choho no Jutsu: Applications of Ninjutsu for the Modern World blog & of course the Keep your Enemies Closer blog. You see I knew what I was doing when I pushed Lt. Deeds & Capt. White into carrying out the threat of pushing the child pornography charges. I knew attempts would be made to circumvent my "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree" argument in the complaint (which came in the form of a 2nd Search Warrant that Assistant Prosecutor Pat Lamp denies existing in court before Judge Kirkpatrick).

 

Yet mentioned in the criminal complaint below...

I'm not the one hiding or hiding secrets. Sure I have my secrets but nothing you can find out about, nothing you can use. My secrets are mine, ad mine alone. I even outlined how I manipulated the system to get the police & prosecutor to hand over evidence by trying to suppress evidence of misconduct. They took my computers trying to conceal evidence, so I forced them to try to hide other pieces of evidence & even went so far as to waive my indictment before grand jury making them carry this to trial with evidence in the public forum of the internet admissible in court.

 We can just as easily look at my complaints to Captain White Head of the Office of Professional Standards & see that while he might have thought me "crazy" or "arrogant" his lack of personal responsibility and failed leadership in silently condoning the conspiratorial actions of Troopers Moore, Palmateer, Duckworth & Efrid with the aid of Lt. Deeds (Office of Professional Standards Investigator). Was enough compromise the integrity of the Office of Professional Standards & the Organization of the West Virgnia State Police.

But wait this doesn't end here, we have Col Smithers & Governor Tomblins who silently condone these criminal activities as well. You see, I had a strategy & my strategy was based on three simple facts;

1. No government wants to admit to corruption within its organization...
2. All Governments will seek to suppress or conceal evidence of corruption...
3. That I don't have to prove everything only create "probable cause" for a formal investigation. Those elements I can't prove are based on claims made by other in this tell; Ashley Redden, DJ Lilly, Nathan Lilly, Jessica Lilly, Danny Massey & circumstantially verified by the actions of the state itself. Thus Generating Probable Cause...

Even the threats and mention of those of minor details cheerleading for the false accusations; described in my Blog on Haters, Liars & Frauds: he Reality of Self-Proclaimed Internet Experts was enough to draw out one of those responsible for lies and misinformation Barron Shepard. My strategy is simple & to be honest (bluntly so) if I wished to kill Trooper Duckworth I'd have been more ninja about it, using poison such as distilled from Blowfish blood (Blowfish were available at Pets & Things) or a Rattlesnake (common to the area) or make it look like he committed suicide. The fact, I am even mentioning this is to address the point: I have no intention to harm anyone, except perhaps in self-defense. I will defend myself, if it comes to that...

However, you see I realized this ends only one of two ways long ago. I can be bold and brazen, in my statements & in my videos. Not because I'm some bad ass killing machine or a instructor of ninjutsu. I can do this because I laid a foundation to win before I fought this battle. My boldness serves two purposes one it makes the police look weak & corrupt, Full Disclosure wasn't the first time either. Doing nothing makes them look weak and arresting me means I go to my preliminary, (even if its a misdemeanor my initial appearance before a Magistrate counts as such, under West Virginia law) & I'm able to go to court within 2 weeks to a months time (allowing the Prosecutor their 20 days to hand over discovery) the "threats" of the Full Disclosure blog also name evidence which would prove conspiracy & criminality (specifically attempts to kidnap me under color of law).

Thus they will do nothing, make excuses & harbor a quiet anger at the audacity of someone who has no political ties or power but has manage to call their own into question. And a recent update concerning Don Roley using friends on facebook to try to get others to distance themselves from m in the ninjutsu community. Why? Because I called him out as a liar and in the Full Disclosure Blog & laughed at him for doing just as I predicted in the Open Letter to Jonathan Russell Blog

Is the Koga Ryu Ninjutsu Really Dead?

This is a fun little article because I'm going argue that Koga Ryu Ninjutsu (in some cases) has a better lineage then the Bujinkan & Takamatsu arts. I addressed the lineage of the Takamatsu schools, the Ninpo Ryu are all out due to Toda Shinryuken being an as yet (and always will be unverified character), Gikan Ryu is suspect because it has not documents & the person who instructed Takamatsu (a security guard at his grandfather's match factor was dead when Takamatsu claimed to learning this art so no proof), Kukishinden Ryu is based on a lie that all Kuki Family Densho were destroyed and that he had provided copies of the scrolls; yet on the old Kuki Family web site it was discussed as an open lie by Takamatsu as the wooden scroll cases were unharmed, though some were singed and other destroyed outright by age (leading me to believe; this is my personal belief, that Takamatsu made up Kukishinden Ryu to have a claimed link to Koryu Roots that he was head of the Tradition) & Takagi Yoshin Ryu which has a proven lineage and that's nothing to argue about.

The fact remains if the Takamatsu-den arts are what you're into you own no one any apologies; certainly not me, I'm stating facts not trying to discourage your practices or what you want to train in. Do as you do and do it well...

One of the Key components of Ninjutsu is history & I'm going to address history before I address the modern evolution of ninjutsu. There is no school of ninjutsu with a proven historical lineage to claim traditional roots. Because of that fact, many people invent lineage and offer to teach "ninjutsu" claiming a lineage that does not exist. I have learned to take all claims to historical ninjutsu with a "grain of salt" except the actual historical documents found in Japanese History Museums written by actual Shinobi-no-Mono (Men who Steal-In).

For those familiar with the man Fujita Seiko (as its a Japanese Name the Family name comes before the Individual name) was known as the "last ninja" this due to his claims of having inherited the Koga Ryu Wada-ha Tradition and for having been an instructor teaching Ninjutsu at the famed Nakano Espionage School in Japan during World War II.

The fact that Seiko Fujita was an interesting character in Japan & the fact that his obituary was published in a Tourist Magazine; as well as his life attracted the attention of Donn Dreager a noted Martial Artists & expert on Asian Martial Arts. As Fujita Seiko was known as an expert on ninja, and with stories by American G.I. of Ambushes and Surprise attacks by Japanese Soldier following World War II, ninjutsu began to spread to the US.

Many Japanese "Ninja Masters" began teaching "Ninjutsu" to soldiers willing to pay to learn. And Japan had its "ninja boom" (a sudden emergence of ninja & ninjutsu in Japanese pop culture) in the 1930s. Fujita Seiko's obituary in a tourist magazine is evidence of ninjutsu (particularly Koga Ryu Ninjutsu) being marketed to foreigners; particularly Americans. Regardless, the historical documents like the Shoninki & Banenshukai were translated into modern Japanese during the 1930s when Japanese interest in ninjutsu peeked.

A side not concerning Ashida Kim (I will discuss more on him later) his father was in the US Army about this time and he learned Ninjutsu from a Japanese Instructor who also taught Karate. Its completely possible that Ashida Kim learned Ninjutsu from a Karate Instructor who read the translated ninjutsu documents, his Karate Instructor was a former student of Nakano, just as its likely he made it all up or actually learned a ninjutsu tradition. Regardless it should be noted thanks to research from Antony Cummins (who translated the historical documents into english) that Fujita Seiko did in fact teach ninjutsu from the Bansenshukai.

Donn Dreager was also an instructor in Tenshi Shoden Katori Shinto-Ryu the oldest school of traditional Japanese swords arts, but included among them the use of the spear (yari), halbred (Nagnana), and others. Oddly enough Tenshi Shoden Katori Shinto-Ryu (a Samurai school) contains Ninjutsu. However, the ninjutsu contained is more counter-intelligence/counter-espionage then actual espionage (this was also due to Antony Cummins research), so allow me to add some supposition...

Having heard of Ninjutsu Mr. Dreager goes looking for ninjutsu, this does not lead straight to Takamatsu or Hatsumi but to Fujita Seiko the Last Ninja of Japan as well as a score of other people claiming to have a "ninja skills" or "ninja training." was US Military men & women in Japan was in the writings of Fujita Seiko and the infamous Koga Ryu.

The Tourist magazine obituary of Fujita Seiko testifies to this very fact, US Servicemen were exposed to the cultural adaptation of the ninja in mainstream Japanese culture; TV shows, movies, books, plays & advertisements. Koga Ryu ninjutsu (though only an 8 hour course from the Bansenshukai) was taught at Nakano Espionage School (A school that was open address as a war correspondence school but secretly trained Commando-Spies for Japan) by the Last Ninja Employed by the Japanese Government Fujita Seiko; who was a Naval Intelligence Officer.

Can you really wonder why there are so many Koga Ryu Schools in the US, with service men learning ninjutsu, kendo, kenjutsu, jujutsu, karate, judo & aikido coming home with stories of black clad ninja assassins? I'm sure quite a few never learned the art and was working off Japanese TV shows & movies.

 

With Antony Cummins translations of the Bansenshukai & Shoninki into modern English many modern Koga Ryu Dojos with no historical lineage are using the historical texts to gain authenticity. While Antony has an issue with this, I do not because it means the ninja who left those scrolls as teachings for the next generations should the need ever arise to need ninjutsu has succeeded in their goals. In the 1930s Japan fostered many Koga Ryu Ninjutsu Schools that catered to GIs in Japan teaching ninjutsu from the works of Fujita Seiko and the modern translations of historical ninjutsu texts.

Now I said I would speak more of Ashida Kim later on & so I will now. I said earlier I know there are fake schools of Koga Ryu Ninjutsu in the West. Ashida Kim may or may not be one of those and in truth I don't care. I like his material and as stated in The Last, Last Ninja blog it was what I had closest to legitimate historical ninjutsu with a focus on Espionage, Field Craft & Sabotage; I've even compared these subjects addressed in secrets of the ninja to the contents of the Bansenshukai.

I know more then I can say but will say what has already been stated concerning Ashida Kim (www.ashidakim.com);

• Ashida Kim is not his real name...
• Ashida Kim's father was in the US Army stationed in Hawaii, which gave Ashida Kim access to former Japanese citizens. Japanese-Americans & returning GI's with information in Ninjutsu...
• Ashida Kim claims he learned ninjutsu from a Shotokan Instructor & Shotokan was taught to 2,000 to 2,500 Japanese soldiers in Nakano...
• Fujita Seiko taught an 8 hour class on Ninjutsu from the Bansenshukai at Nakano (based on the evidence in the form of course credit hours for the Nakano School discovered by Antony Cummins)...
• Shotokan was taught at Nakano as the hand-to-hand combat form & many Shotokan Instructors in the early days before the Ninja Boom were claiming to know ninjutsu in the 1960s &1970s...
• Japan Experienced its first Ninja-Boom (explosion into popular culture) in 1930s with the translations of historical documents into modern Japanese, a 2nd Ninja-Boom in the 1950s with the antics and attention of men like Fujita Seiko & ending in the mid 1960s, during which time Ashida Kim was in Hawaii and would have had contact with the material, images and claims by others to knowing the art...
• Ashida Kim claims his Ninjutsu comes from the Kimatake clan which is not listed as a historical ninjutsu school or family...

I could say more but won't and leave you to examine what you wish to believe. I know Ashida Kim as a personal friend and mentor in my life though as a true ninja I've only had physical contact with him and trained with him on two occasions. I have no loyalty to his style but I have loyalty to my friends. There is certainly the possibility of Ashida Kim having been trained by a member of Nakano, someone who read the translations of historical documents, having trained with a living breathing inheritor of a ninjutsu system or to have made it all up.

The question is, is the spirit of Koga Ryu dead or did it rise from the ashes like a phoenix when shinobi long ago committed their knowledge to text to preserve their secrets for the next generations. I doubt they envisioned the impact they have on the world today. No one has a proven lineage & I long abandoned the quest to prove such things or argue them with village idiots. Ninjutsu may be reborn because of the popular culture's interest in it, but its rebirth (true rebirth) lies in the knowledge left for us by the last of the Shinobi... and I'm not talking about Fujita Seiko.

The Last "Last Ninja:" The Fraud of the Ninjutsu Lineage Arguements

If you have spent any time on martial arts forums or facebook you notice that the issue with ninjutsu is lineage. So lets discuss lineage...

Before we get further let me say that I would like the thank Antony Cummings & the Historical Ninjutsu Research Team for translating the Densho and Historical Ninjutsu Research Group for helping to throw some ideas around on Facebook. So thank you all.

Now then let me start by addressing the ninja lineage issue in itself, as such... There is no verifiable ninja lineage proven to exist in the 20th Century and therefor none in the 21st Century. That's right my lineage is basically someone told me "this is ninjutsu" and I've told my students "this is ninjutsu" then Antony Cummings pops up with translated scrolls and says "This is Ninjutsu!"

So we know what ninjutsu is and what it isn't. Imagine a coin; this coin is warfare. On one side is the heads; the public image of combat skills, strategy, tactics etc. On the other side is the tails; except our tails is just a blank space because the tails is invisible and unseen. Ninjutsu is not the art of invisibility but the invisible (unseen) art, its practice is not in stealth killing or hiding but in gathering information, infiltration and investigation. Or as explained by others ninjutsu is Espionage, Sabotage & Assassination; though the use of assassination is more geared toward enemy agents who themselves are seeking to gather information and subvert your side's own operations then killing enemy leaders and politicians.

Oddly enough the first "Last Ninja" was Fujita Seiko who never stated if had or hadn't passed on his ninjutsu lineage and while it is assumed he didn't it is of little consequence at this point. The fact remains (again thanks to the efforts of Anthony Cummings while in Japan) a copy of the Nakano Espionage Course revealed Fujita Seiko did teach ninjutsu at the famed Nakano Espionage School in Japan during WW2 and that he taught from the Bansenshukai. Two distinct versions of this text exist, one for Koga (Koka) Shinobi and another for Iga Shinobi. Both are basically the same text with only a slight difference in how things are compiled. So for a "fraudulent ninja" with no proven lineage Fujita Seiko had a hand in training modern Japanese Espionage Agents during WW2. To be honest, that's pretty **Bleeping** Ninja!

Now to consider the issue of whether Fujita Seiko actually passed on his ninjutsu to someone else? We don't know, if ninjutsu is meant to be an invisible art then would even have passed it on to a new Soke? He never stated he wished to let the art die. Of course he never stated he wished to see it kept alive either. The fact remains ninjutsu is not a martial art and is separate from the combat methods of soldiers. It does not mean the Shinobi/Ninja is not trained as a soldier/warrior but that the combat training and soldiering skills are separate from the espionage skills, trained differently and hidden from the eyes of regular soldiers.

Bansenshukai

Volume Index & Contents

Volume 1: Jo
Preface & InterductionPhilosophy of Successful Warfare & StrategyHistorical Examples of Successful Warfare & StrategyIndex of the Volumes
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Volume 2: Seishin
Sincerity, Motivation & Moral Strength of Intention
Correct approach to Life & Death

Volume 3: Shochi
Methods For Managing a Ninja Organization
Using Ninja Successfully
Conditions for Stopping Enemy Agents
Methods for Infiltrating An Enemy's Base

Volume 4: Yo-Nin
Various Methods For Observing The Enemy's Intentions:
*Continuous observation through agents placed during peaceful times
*Location of agents after war breaks out
*Observation of the geographical layout of the enemy's territory
*Observation of the enemy's force numbers, capabilities and other strenghts
*Observation of the enemy's strategy and positioning
*Nokisaru: (The Eaves Monkey) Agents who specilize in watching and listening (Ancient Application of using Audio-Video Bugs and Wiretaps)

Volumes 5, 6 & 7: In-Nin
Shinobi Yochi- Ninja Night Attack/Raid Techniques
Goto- Mugging & Assailent Techniques
Methods Of:
*Stealth
*Deception
*Confusion Tactics
*Surprise Attacks & Ambushes
*Disguises
*Sneaking In & Burglary
*Capturing Enemys
*Betrayal
*Individual Fighting
*Group Hit & Scatter Tactics

 Volume 8: TenjiTentoki {Heaven Time} Tenmon {Heaven's Gate}
Methods For Interpreting The Coditions InThe Enviroment:
*Weather Forcasting
*Tide Tables
*Moon Phases
*Determination Of Direction & Location By Observing The Stars
*Divination
*Predicting Future Trends & Happenings

Volume 9: Nin-ki
Toki- Climbing Gear
Suiki- Water Gear
Kaiki- Entering Gear
Physical Dimensions & Specifications of Equipment

Volume 10:
Kaki- Fire Gear:
*Explosives *Smoke Bombs
Medicines
Poisons
Sleeping Potions
Formulas

While the Bansenshukai deals with a selective concern of small teams tactics (considered skirmish tactics in their time) it has nothing on ninjutsu as a martial arts system teaching either joint manipulation or striking, nothing to hold a sword or shoot a bow and arrow. These are soldier skills and a special forces unit does not shoot a gun any different then an infantry soldier fresh out of basic, except that the Special Forces soldier trains more and has more experience.

So what does this have to do with the Last Ninja or Last Ninjas that seem to be popping up? Quite simply, while Fujita Seiko may or may not have been a Soke of a tradition, he was an instructor for the Nakano Espionage School training spies and commandos during World War 2.

The Last Ninja title is now claimed by Hatsumi, who has no connection to ninjutsu or a proven lineage; except that claims a higher order of Ninjutsu called Ninpo & he learned it from Takamatsu. In fact much of Takamatsu-den lineage claims to be false. Lets examine it and then why.

Toshitsugu (Chosui) Takamatsu claims to have inherited several schools from Toda Shinryuken, these schools are;

Gyokko-ryū/Gyokko-ryū Kosshijutsu

Kotō-ryū Koppōjutsu

Shinden Fudo Ryu/Shinden Fudō-ryū Dakentaijutsu

Togakure Ryu Ninpo Taijutsu

Gyokushin Ryu Ninpo

Kumogakure Ryu Ninpo

As Toda Shinryuken Masamitsu is listen in Volume 1 of the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten as having died 4 years before Tokamatsu's birth, however this was not fixed until the 3rd edition of the Encyclopedia of Martial Arts; the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten, after being addressed in the 2nd edition. And the existence of fictional characters the equal of Robinhood and King Arthur in the west was stated in the first volume and corrected by Takamatsu other questions require answering.

How come as a military man and sword instructor no record of Toda Shinryuken exists?
How come as a bone setter no tax records exist?
How come Takamatsu placed his death 4 years before his own birth?

The reality Takamatsu seems to have made up Toda Shinryuken after being forbidden from teaching claiming a ninjutsu lineage through the Kuki family. You see the Amatsu Tatara claims a direct transmission from Babylon via a Chaldean King who brought a great library of knowledge to tribal Japan. While Takamatsu claims this knowledge was in the Kuki Family's possession and has a creditable lineage to the Kuki Family, the Family denies the existence of the Amatsu Tatara before Takamatsu "discovered it" and disputes Takamatsu's claim to destroyed scrolls and his own copies of the documents.

So automatically six of the nine traditions are proven false, looking at the issues with Takamatsu's story more so then his lineage and his habit of making grandiose claims; such as hiss letter detailing his "secret spy missions" in China during World War 2; Takamatsu had bragged that a busted ear drum (a training injury) prevented him from joining the military during that time. More so, as proven by the Kuki family the destroyed scroll claim is false due to the Densho being held in wood cases that protected them; while their are missing scrolls these have been lost to time and while their was a fire several scrolls which were "burned" merely had their wooden cases scorched while the scrolls inside where protected from the damage.

Many Bujinkan "scholars" point to Shindenfudo Ryu Daikentaijutsu as being proof of Toda Shinryuken's existence. This is relatively true except that the Shindenfudo Ryu studied by Kuki Takei from the Kuki family of Kukishin Ryu and a Senior student of Jugaro Kano the founder of Judo was not a student of Toda Shinryuken. In fact their is a style of Shinden Fudo Ryu Jujutsu with a completely different lineage and no connection to the Bujinkan or Takamatsu except that it was studied by Kuki Takei. This lineage of Shinden Fudo Ryu Jujutsu and Judo are the sources of Baritsu; an English Self-Defense System created by  Edward William Barton-Wright in 1898. Barton was an Engineer who spent several years in Japan.

It is therefore easy to assume in light of the other falsehoods that either;
a) Takamatsu invented the Kuki Takei connection to Shindenfudo Ryu or
b) Takamatsu added Shinden Fudo Ryu to the list of arts taught to him by Toda Shinryuken (a man yet unproven to exist) to make the fictitious Toda seem more real by adding a legitimate martial art to the fictional arts passed down to him by a fictional master.

So no argument stands as none of these six ryu ha have been proven and the man Takamatsu claims as the source seems non-existent.

This leaves only Kukishinden Ryu, Takagi Yoshin Ryu & Gikan Ryu.
*Kukishinden is a splinter from the Kuki family's Kukishin Ryu formed by Takamatsu. While the Kuki family doesn't wish to speak of Takamatsu save for clarifying the destruction story to be a falsehood & to label the Amatsu Tatara as the work of Takamatsu not much else is gleamed. Whether Takamatsu broke away from the Kukishin Ryu and founded his own ryu-ha Kukishinden to become Soke of own traditional is debated. The fact is Kukishinden Ryu is a verifiable and traceable system to the Kukishin family.
*Takagi Yoshin Ryu under Mizuta Yoshitaro is also not disputed and Takamatsu was in possession of the Takagi Yoshin Ryu Densho to validate his claim.
*Gikan Ryu has some dispute as there are two different lineages claiming Takamatsu inherited/learned from both Mitzuta Yoshitaro and Ishitani Matsutaro Takekage; yet no proof exists for Ishitani's existence and a supposedly claimed grave site with the name doesn't prove this person knew, taught  or inherited a lineage to pass on to Takamatsu.

So we see 2 and half (I give Gikan Ryu a half value) lineages that are proven under Takamatsu and none of them are ninjutsu or have anything to do with ninjutsu except that Takamatsu experienced the Ninja Boom of Japan in the 1930s and 50 years later Hatsumi a student of Takamatsu mass marketed the ninja image during that time.

In 1969, Donn Draeger wrote in Comprihensive Asian Fighting Arts "The late Fujita Seiko was the last of the living ninja, having served in assignments for the Imperial Government during the Taisho and Showa eras. No ninja exist today. Modern authorities such as T. Hatsumi are responsible for most research being done on ninjutsu."

Fujita was also called the last true ninja in his obituary in 1966 published in a tourist magazine in Japan. Despite claims that Fujita didn't teach ninjutsu at Nakano has been disproved by historical research done by Antony Cummings, however is was only a 8 hour course of study.

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The Iga Ninja Museum (a tourist attraction and not an academic institution) claims the "last ninja" is their honorary directer Jinichi Kawakami; however he claims only to be the Soke of Koga Ban family Ninjutsu both Iga and Koka Ryu arts.

Hatsumi claims title of "last ninja" from Takamatsu whom Hatsumi believed was divine (yes they worship him in the Shinto sense of paying homage to spirits) and named his Bujinkan Dojo after Takamatsu; Bu: War or pretaining to War, Jin: God or Divine Spirit & Kan: Hall or Domain. Bujinkan literally translates to Hall of the Warrior God or War God's Hall.

In his 2006 book Takamatsu Toshitsugu: The Last Shinobi Wolfgang Ettig refers to Takamatsu as the "last shinobi" citing unproven and fanciful tells of Takamatsu fighting death matches in China and similar unproven tells. Such as his self-established Moko no Tora (Tiger of Monogolia) title. Surely a famed fighter of several "death matches" who carried out espionage activies for the Japanese government and known by such a name to his enemies would have some proof?

Consider that (picking on Hanshi Frank Dux) a "notorious ninja fraud" Frank W. Dux is often reputed by his enemies as having been proven to have lied about the whole Blood Sport Kumite fighting event; had taken Soldier of Fortune Magazine in court and proved they used unverified claims and never investigated the facts. Consider that an alleged fraud who sued Jean Claude Van Dam actually attended the Iran-Contra hearings as a witness, whose claims to being an (untrained) agent for the CIA was verified by an assistant director for the CIA, a Naval Intelligence Officer and a former Soviet Officer who defected to the US. Oh and those alleged sugared glass bottles he broke in Bierce France and the alleged fake bullet proof glass is listed as real in the Genius Book of Records.

So Frank Dux isn't a fraud? You decide my opinion is, no. Nor does he claim to be the "Last Ninja" or such nonsense. The fact remains the Last Ninja title has a very specific point to it. Money...

Let us examine Shidoshi Richard Van Donk's site advertising a video ninjutsu course, that takes you up to shodan; though fine print says training requires direct testing for shodan. But the second image is priceless; it lists other courses...
* Nidan Course for you second degree black belt
* Sandan Course for your third degree black belt
* A Shidoshi-Ho Course teaching you to be an instructor
* A Ninja Masters Course teaching you to go from beginning to Godan (5th degree black belt) requiring you to test in Japan before Hatsumi in Japan.

Shihan Van Donk isn't the only one doing this;

That's right more mail order black belts offering authentic ninjutsu; this is little different then video self-defense courses & I don't believe these courses are without merit as a tool for learning. They are marketed towards a single end goal. Offering an instant "bad ass certificate" that proves you are a "bad ass" without having to put yourself at risk. Much like the Military Hand-to-Hand combat courses and Civilian Self-Defense Courses they offer you a good feeling and little chance to exercise those skills; to prove them in a training or real world situation.

The problem comes from lack of usage or experience with these skills; its been covered ninjutsu is not fighting arts & these courses do not offer anything in regards to espionage or intelligence operations.

Instead they offer a Hollywood image of being a deadly ninja assassin with black suit and sword, not very in line with the Bansenshukai is it?

More so looking at the Ninja Master Courses and Shidoshi-Ho courses we see a present trend of "home schooled martial artists" becoming instructors. Claiming a legitimate and authentic system, which isn't in any way related to historical ninjutsu and, many spending their time on the Internet attacking "fraudulent ninja practicers" to boost their own self-importance.

 Looks like I'm buying a Sham Wow!

with Ninjas... 

 

The fact remains several shidoshi-ho (godan ranked instructors) are listed in the Success Stories section who have used this course and are now instructors operating Dojos, some with websites listed.

Then your "home schooled ninja master" becomes a home schooled instructor and teaches your kids the "secrets of the ninja." I think I mentioned Sham & Wow at some point (joking by the way). While this has value as a learning tool; something I don't discount and in all honesty most instructors from creditable arts, lineages and organization often have little real world experience. I myself was a student of McDojo baby sitting service and except for a few school yard fights and teenage stupidity (ok a lot of teenage stupidity) had to get experience the hard way. It is honestly better to be untested then to have to test yourself when you are unprepared from academic learning, my personal experiences and observations after the experiences had ended.

 

Looking at the Ninjutsu IBDA Course Curriculum; this course who's subject matter is martial arts and fighting techniques; nothing concerning ninjutsu as listed in the Bansenshukai or other historically research materials.

 

 

All the way up to judan (10th Degree Blackbelt) ninjutsu is not covered and while a passing glance does uncover the mention of Togakure Ryu we have the problem; excluding the lineage issues, that Togakure Ryu is mostly weapons with little unarmed "taijutsu" and hardly any espionage mentioned or taught.

 

How does this compare the "frauds" like Frank Dux and Ashida Kim; well Hanshi Dux was a private contractor contracted to operate as a spy; an espionage agent. I don't have much concerning frame work for teaching as Hanshi Dux desires to keep it a secret of he and his students. Grandmaster Ashida Kim (Admittedly a Stage/Ring Name); allegedly Radford Davis Jr and Christopher Hunter, seems to follow the course of what is historically accurate.

Looking first at Secrets of the Ninja, we see a contents page; with the first subject after the preface on Ninjutsu History speaks of espionage as a weapon, followed by a basic coverage of ninjutsu dealing with meditation for inner strength and kuji kiri. This compares with the spirit of the Bansenshukai Volumes 1 & 2, which is considered by many historical researchers the "Bible of Ninjutsu."
The rest deals with In-nin/inpo and tonin/tonpo which also follows along the lines of Volumes 5, 6 & 7 of the Bansenshukai but also takes elements from Volumes3 & 9 in spirit.

So elements in the section on tonpo would follow along with the spirit of sections on Yonin and using ninja successfully.

Looking at the contents from Ninja Hands of Death; three things immediately jump at the reader...

1) The Breakdown of sections Kata Dante, Submission Holds, Ninjutsu & Post Script...

Ashida Kim did not consider ninjutsu a martial art in itself but separated it from martial arts techniques. This book copy written in 1985 comes before Historical Ninjutsu Researcher Anthony Cummings addressed this very element in the modern image of ninjutsu.

2) That Ashida Kim refers to Nine Methods of Prevailing...

What are these nine methods of prevailing that are different then Kata Dante; a striking and trapping form or grappling skills? They are over views of strategic principles of social infiltration and manipulation. I would suggest one reads the book for details; http://www.amazon.com/Ninja-Hands-Death-Ashida-Kim/product-reviews/0873643224

3) A post script titled the World's Deadliest Fighting Secrets...

While this seems mostly geared toward combat on the title alone, one cannot discount the words of the post script. That is that all warfare whether personal combat or fielding armies is a matter strategy and Ashida Kim offers methods of attacking by strategy in this post script.

 

So why is there such a competition fueled by people trying to validate themselves through Internet attacks on business competitors, empty titles of the "Last Ninja" and learn at home mastery courses? Well because this is America. Because some people want to feel good as opposed to doing good works and because quite simply its a desire to validate one's self and one's choices. Many times we are unaware that their are no good or bad, right or wrong choices. Our opinions and actions are so irrelevant to all but ourselves we cannot see how unimportant they are.

 

In the end its whats we do with what we have. I don't want to be the "Last Ninja" nor would I care to learn an 800 year old tradition. I'm to focused on being the First Ninja; the first to design a thermal blocking shinobi gi, the first to develop a sniper course and add modern firearms to the curriculum, the first to teach strategy, intelligence warfare and espionage tactics openly to the public. If my lineage is a fraud; so what my methods (methods I discussed on this blog) have worked for me and a real life or death situation. I can't be accused of giving away national security secrets concerning espionage training if my ninjutsu is real or fake and I make no claim to being a CIA or otherwise operative.

 

In the end things are what you make them and you get out what you put in, if you work hard those courses might benefit you. But, if you spend all your time validating choices you made and not working hard to achieve results, you gain only the illusion of progress.