Overview
(*AU based loosely off History and the anime ‘Basilisk’)
During the Sengoku period there were two primary factions of ninjas; the Iga and Kōga. The both clans have had a longstanding feud with each other, serving opposite masters during the many wars that took place during that time.
There was a third clan formed later headed by Hattori Hanzō, the famous Ninja employed by Tokugawa Ieyasu. Once the Tokugawa Shogunate took power, the Hattori clan stayed in the loyal to the Shogun, moving into Edo castle. Now that wartime had finally ended, at the behest of the Tokugawa, Hattori Hanzō forced a peace pact upon the ninja clans. The hope was to not only avoid further ninja bloodshed, but to also prevent sparking further rebellion. Both the Iga and Kōga, disliked the idea, but they had no choice but to accept.
Years had passed and both clans continued to take jobs such as spying, assassination, and guard duties for whoever paid them a handsome price. However, the forced peace agreement between the Iga and Kōga did little to stem their feud, leading to their hatred and dissent to grow deeper.
This AU will revisit the stories of the Iga, Kōga, and Hattori.
Map
Hattori Clan
Location: Edo
Clan Leader: Hattori Hanzō II
Historical Overview:
Hattori Hanzō served alongside Tokugawa Ieyasu and was a key player in helping him to unify Japan and become the Shogun. After the Sengoku period ended, the Hattori clan served as guards for Edo castle, and a famous gate, the Hanzōmon, was named after Hanzō.
In stories, Hanzō was said to have supernatural abilities such as teleportation, psychokinesis, and precognition, which helped shape the pop culture we associate with ninja today. (Source Link)
Iga Clan
Location: Iga Province (Near Ueno)
Clan Leader: Iga Hiroshi
Historical Overview:
The Iga clan were the first groups of Ninja, and originally where Hattori Hanzō was born. Their ninja were trained in disguise, escape, concealment, explosives, medicine, and poisons, unarmed combat, and various forms of weaponry. They used scaling hooks for climbing and many different tools, such as lock picks and ladders to sneak into the homes of various Daimyo (Source Link).
Kōga Clan
Location: Kōka Province
Clan Leader: (Undecided)
Historical Overview:
The Koga were better known as a group that participated in guerrilla warfare. They exploited geographical advantages, launched surprise attacks and night raids, and tormented them by using fire and smoke. There is a famous story called the “53 families of Kōka” about this battle (Source Link).
Ninja Ranks
Below clan leaders, the ninja are divided into ranks based off their skill level (Source Link). In order to move up in the ranks they must meet certain requirements and pass a trial. The three levels are:
- Jonin – These are the highest-skilled ninja who are given difficult missions and are often advisors to the clan leader.
- Chūnin – Ninja who are skilled & perform normal duties, but do not take on advising roles. They often support Jonin on larger missions.
- Genin – The lowest rank who act as couriers, foot soldiers, and general spies to gather intelligence.
Special Techniques
The ninja in this universe each can develop their own special technique or art called a Kuji-kuri. These are often deemed as supernatural, adding to the mystery of the Ninja. As of note, ninja do not share information about their Kuji-kuri outside of their clan, as doing so would risk their enemies learning of their secret weapon.
Music:
Theme Song:
Strong Fate, Wagakki Band
Lyrics: https://robotandlyrics.wordpress.com/2017/03/08/strong-fate/
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyuzfQkUlyY