Special report on Sengoku ninjas! 7 tools used by shinobi

Though commonly tools used for bad schemes are called "seven tools," these tools were used by ninjas active in the Sengoku period.

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Fiona Moore/Flickr
 

1. Shuriken

 
AlMare/Wikipedia

As everyone knows, this is a ninja's necessity.
Though it's standard to throw it at an enemy, if you slot it into a crevice in a castle's stone wall it becomes an instant foothold.

2. Kaginawa

 
Worldantiques/Wikipedia

When you have to climb over a tall wall, you throw this so it catches the top and you can climb up using the rope.

3. Kunai

 
Hwoarang17/Wikipedia

Since both edges are blades, much like a survival knife you can throw it at an enemy or use it to clear away any obstacles. There are many ways you can use this.

4. Mizugumo

 

In manga and anime scenes where they put this on their legs and smoothly walk through water are famous, but in reality it was used more like a life preserver.

5. Kandou

 

うぃき野郎/Wikipedia

Though the established theory is that this hand-held lantern that only shone from one side was invented in the Edo period, it seems that ninjas in the Sengoku period had already invented and used a high-power kandou lantern.

Ninja Kandou

A handheld light that resembled the modern-day flashlight. Though the inside held a candle, there was a mechanism applied to keep the wick constantly standing up, which allowed the light to stay lit even if the lantern was shaken violently.

ja.wikipedia.org

6. Metsubushi

Though this is famous for being thrown in order to raise clouds of smoke and fumes, in reality it was a handheld tube filled with capsicum powder and chemicals. They would aim and blow in the direction of the opponent as a ninja pepper spray.

7. Dou no Hi

 

In the present era, we would call it a chemical body warmer.
Inside the copper tube they would fill it with hardened and charred Japanese paper and plant fibers.
It was used with a goal to retain body heat.

The information in this article is accurate at the time of publication.

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