My son Shinichiro seemed more than a little disappointed when I told him that the role of a ninja was not combat. Until now, ninja had always been the first of the cool things for him, and cool things always beat up a lot of bad guys.
I was a little worried that I might have stolen a child’s dream, although it is important to have the right knowledge.
But there was no turning back now.
I have burned boats and bridges, and the dice are already rolling.
What is a Ninja’s Job?
(For the sake of clarity, I, Mineyuki Hattori, will be referred to as “M” and my son Shinichiro as “S.”)
M: Were you disappointed to hear that ninjas don’t fight?
S: That’s right. I feel like I’ve been betrayed by my girlfriend.
M: What? Do you already have a girlfriend, Shinichiro?
S: Even if I didn’t, I would know that much.
M: …I see. The answer to why ninja didn’t like fighting has to do with the kind of work they did.
S: The work of the ninja?
M: Yes, you could say it is the raison d’etre of the ninja. To begin with, the ninja were not a group that did something with a goal as an independent organization. In most cases, the ninja were like the lackeys of a particular feudal lord who had a contract with him and carried out manipulative activities for him.
S: I see, that’s Ron to Harry.
M: Shinichiro, you looked at Ronald Weasley that way… Well, that’s all right. The most important activity of that ninja was espionage.
S: Espi…?
M: Espionage, or spying. They would spy on enemy feudal lords. Each feudal lord wanted to have an advantage over the others and win the war. For this reason, it was very important to gather information on the enemy. The ninja played an active role in this. A first-rate ninja was able to return without being detected by the enemy and gather a lot of information useful for warfare, such as the situation of the enemy’s position and the strength of their forces.
S: I see. But if that is the case, Ron is a little inadequate, isn’t he?
M: Let’s forget about Ron for once.
S: Like old lovers?
M: …Yes, like old lovers. And now, in my explanation, I have included a very important idea to understand the ninja. Do you know what that means?
S: I heard that Albert Einstein, in his later years, said something like recognizing the unknown is intelligence.
M: You mean you don’t know?
S: Yeah.
M: I explained that “coming back is the first-class ninja.” This is very important. No matter how much useful information you get, if you can’t pass it on to the lords, it has zero value. On the other hand, even if you don’t get particularly great information, if you can even convey what you saw, it may create very great value. So…
S: Ninjas don’t fight.
M: Exactly. To avoid fighting as much as possible, to survive and complete their mission—that was the most important thing for the ninja. It’s not that the ninja cannot fight, it’s that they choose not to fight. What do you think? Feeling a little less discouraged?
S: Yes, I think I feel much better now that I understand. It doesn’t bring back a lost lover, though.
M: …Shinichiro, if you are having a hard time, you can always talk to me.
To be continued…
