Nexus

~ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20135674

__________________
1 OF A KIND


[

ACt

This is exactly what the Ninja want you to believe.

__________________
It's amazing to me that, unlike in the real world, people on the internet will wear "everyone thinks I'm a moron" as a badge of honour.

Mal

I don't like the way you've worded the poll, it implies there is some antagonistic force acting against Ninjutsu. I am going to edit it.

Numinous

I think the world was much more affected when pianos replaced harpsichords than the event of real-life ninjas going extinct. The public consciousness of ninjas is already grounded deep and it's already not what ninjas really are. And considering what is the biggest piece of media advertising ninjas, I'd probably hang up my kunai and wait for a time where ninjas aren't equatable to orange-wearing-closeted-gay-blond-brats.

__________________

Mal

Exactly, most of what people outside Japan believe about ninjas was made up by Hollywood in the '80s. Ninja were never exceptionally skilled fighters compared to their contemporaries, there are very few recorded (questionable) assassinations by ninjas, and they are no better at espionage than any modernly trained individual.

jekyl_hyde

Can't believe I didn't see this.

What made the "assassinations" by ninjas so mystique was that they were kinda like spies. They wore the normal garb of a farmer/trader back in the feudal days. This was the beginnings of ninjutsu. It eventually grew, and there is the old.... I guess Japanese-urban legend, that ninjas were involved with the Japanese mafia (best episode of the Simpsons).

Contrasting to what is posted on Wikipedia... the most common weapon for a ninja was a kama (used for reaping rice) or a bow (long stick). To bear a sword, you usually had to have some place in military ranks or nobility. The only weapon that the commoners wielded were sais, used for blocking and breaking swords.

ask me anything

I'm glad ninjas are going extinct. About damn time. With them gone perhaps future mangakas will spare readers from the horrible Naruto-esque ninja stories not yet written, and focus on other subject matter.

I've never really had any respect for ninjutsu as a legitimate martial arts form. To me it's always come across as something you learn purely as a technical art, as opposed to a practical one. I've always thought it would be cool if someone were to modernize it with the latest technology to make it all badass. Like some sort of ninja outfit that had a cooling/heating system built in to it that makes you invisible to infrared. Night vision goggles with built in magnification abilities. Shoes with advanced springs/shock absorbers to help move quieter and with more energy in each step or jump.etc..... I dunno, maybe something like a cross between Master Miyagi and Sam Fisher. I could respect that.

__________________

Numinous

@ AMA: why even bother recycling ninjutsu? Ninja is but a fancy word for "assassin" so, with the evolution of technology, so will the assassins evolve with it, so it was only a matter of time until ninjas would go extinct (I even thought all of them were extinct by the Meiji period). I mean, do you see any medieval assassin around except in AC (which is also innacurate for the sake of awesome, by the way)?

__________________

Mal

It's called DARPA. Or at least it would be, if they could get the funding they wanted. Fortunately the US government realizes that there are more important things to be done for much better reasons that "dude guys, hey, you know what would be super cool?"

You seem to misunderstand what Ninjutsu actually was; it was very similar to other martial arts in Japan at the time. In fact, it didn't really have its own style of fighting at all. A ninja's first course of action during a confrontation was escape, so just it borrowed heavily from existing arts and changed very little in the process when it came to actual conflict.

It was more concerned with covert skills, which almost never involved sneaking around at night in a black suit. First, because a dark blue would have been used since black is unnatural; second, because most espionage/infiltration was done just like it is today (ie. getting someone on the inside or just threatening/paying off someone already there).

kael03

Not to mention the "black suit" is a Hollywood construct. That idea was taken from stage hands in kabuki plays that would dress in black to better blend in the shadows when they had to move props during a scene. Ninja were more likely to wear farmer's clothing or monk robes than the black suit.

jericho Uzimaki

also some ninja were just common people that had to McGuyver their tools and equipment into weapons against the government supported bad guys.Which they also had to be sneaky and underhanded to defeat these "properly " trained and well equipped Samurai.

There have been much better assassins since that day and age anyway. Hell if you put some Delta, Seals or even Spetnaz Operatives back in the ninja day they might just out do some of them.

__________________




Gamble

Joshua the Rogue

Transformers:Generations
For NaruHina fans

First Orange knuckle head ninja

The Question

Mal

Spetznaz are ninjas.

Source: Backflip axe throwing

ACt

I know a kid who has a throwing star. I'm pretty sure he's a ninja.

__________________
It's amazing to me that, unlike in the real world, people on the internet will wear "everyone thinks I'm a moron" as a badge of honour.