16 Things You Didn’t Know About the Origins of Ninjas

16 Things You Didn’t Know About the Origins of Ninjas

Trista - October 26, 2018

16 Things You Didn’t Know About the Origins of Ninjas
Japanese farmer. media.economist.com.

6. Ninja Weapons Were Farm Tools

Imagine that you are the star of your favorite spy movie. You sleuth your way into getting your name on the guest list to a party at a wealthy criminal’s chateau in the Alps and dance your way across the floor, winning the hearts of the women and the envy of the men. You steal away to the secret room where the diamond you are after is hidden when you find that you are surrounded by a fighting force of a dozen armed bodyguards. They handcuff you and search you, leading to them finding throwing stars, nun-chucks, and other paraphernalia that is weaponry. You can’t talk your way out of this one.

The thing is that to be a master of disguise, ninjas couldn’t carry around conspicuous weapons, even if they were hidden under layers of modest clothing. Seeing as many ninjas were farmers, they had tools like sickles, shears, and saws. Unsuspecting samurai and their bodyguards couldn’t anticipate that these were actually weapons, which the ninjas were trained to use on their missions. Thus, if they were captured, all that they had was farming equipment. They could easily play the “poor farmer” card and get off scot-free.

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