Objective: Assassinate
Boss: Azuma Shiunsai

You begin the level in a huge room inside an European Castle. Go straight on and leave the chamber through the exit in front of you. Keep moving forward through the next chamber. There are stairs on the right and an exit in front of you. Ignore the stairs. You should be able to see some tables in the next chamber. Beware since there is a woman walking around the tables in a clockwise direction. Whilst she is walking on the one side of the tables, you move on through the other side. The exit of the chamber is on the right, just after the fireplace.

After you enter the next chamber, move near the wall on the left. You will see stairs, and some suits of armour just beyond. Be cautious since the last suit of armour on the left is actually an alive knight with a sword! Surprise him; instead of letting him surprise you. After taking him out, leave the chamber through the exit on the right. Cross the next chamber and wait for a while along the wall on the right of the exit. The next chamber is actually a huge abyss surrounded by ledges. A knight armed with sword will come along from in front and will take a left turn just before the door, continuing to walk ahead to the right. Once he returns and heads away from you take him out, you must keep in mind that the place is dangerous and so you must be careful not to fall in the abyss whilst killing him.

After he is dead, turn around and head left along the ledge until you reach the exit of the chamber. At the exit use stealth to position yourself against the wall. The next chamber is in a lower level. There is a concealed pitfall just after the entrance, also in the distance you will see a stone statue and a woman in front of it looking in your direction. Wait for her to begin walking, and enter the chamber performing a jump in order to avoid the pitfall. Now, go on the left, following the woman. After a while she will take a left turn. Leave the chamber through the exit on the right. Take this route and then the passageway left. In the next chamber there is a knight with a halberd patrolling along the wall to the left of the door. Take him out whilst he is with his back or right side towards you.

Now, cross the chamber until you reach the fence at the end of it. From here you will see a platform in the middle of a water area. Shiunsai is waiting for you there. The bridge leading to the platform is in the opposite side. The best thing to do is grapple on to one of the statutes and then drop down to Shiunsai. This is the best way to stealth-kill him and avoid challenging him in a swordfight. Good luck!

Killing Blade, Dual Blades, Great Drama The town has fallen to the hands of the Kuroya. Reach the playhouse to rescue Ogin from Ranzou.

Recommended Items
2x smoke bomb, dokuto blades, 1x blowgun, 1x ninja rebirth

Walkthrough
Difficulty: Normal

As soon as you begin turn slightly right and then double jump across and head up into the woods. As you run into the woods you’ll see an archer walking to your left, run up right behind him and Stealth Kill him. Now crouch and move to the far corner and observe a spear-wielding guard patrolling the tunnel. Wait for his back to be to you and then jump down and Stealth Kill him as well. Now crouch and move into the tunnel and stop at the bottom of the slope. Remain crouched, highlight your blowgun and kill the patrolling guard ahead when he appears from behind the wall. Now quickly retreat out of this tunnel and head into the other tunnel at the far side of the wall when you get near the other opening, crouch and wait for the other two guards in the area to find the dead body. Once everyone calms down again, run up slightly and then grapple up onto the right side of the roof ahead. Climb up and crouch and slowly move up so that you can observe both guards. One should now be stationary in front of the main door and the other patrols the far side. Wait for the patrolling guard to walk away and then quickly drop down and Stealth Kill the stationary guard beneath you. Quickly cancel the animation and run back a bit and then grapple back up onto the same roof again and crouch. Wait for the remaining guard to be alarmed and then drop down and Stealth Kill him as well. Grab the decoy bell in the Red Box, which is tucked away in the north west corner of the area. Then head into the area next to this one via the opening and pick up the health potion in the corner. Now drop stealthily(“R1″) down into the water and head through the crawlspace into the next area.

Keep R1 pressed as you exit the crawlspace and then grapple and hang from the left wall next to the bridge. Wait for the Archer to turn around and then quickly climb up and Stealth Kill him.(If he turns to walk onto the bridge, drop stealthily and wait and then grapple/hang
again) Now drag his body and dump it in the water below. Go to the Northern ledge and wait until you see the white cloth Samurai patrolling the far side. Once he is out of view, jump up and grapple up onto the roof and immediately crouch. Stay in the south eastern corner of this roof as you observe his patrol pattern. Also take this moment to look to your left as a guitar-toting Kunoichi patrols the main entrance of the large manor. Wait for the white cloth samurai to walk down the stairs and then slowly creep forward and then drop down and Stealth Kill him when he is right beneath you. Now head back down into the area with the water where you killed the Archer and head up the slope into the next area. Roll along the left perimeter until you trigger a guard conversation. Now immediately roll back down the slope and then hide between the slope and the wall as you wait for a guard to walk up. As soon as he turns to walk back, jump/run up and Stealth Kill him. Quickly cancel the animation and run right back to your hiding spot in case the other guard spots him. Once the coast is clear, slowly move while crouching along the left perimeter of this area until you are safely concealed behind the wooden fence. Lean up against the far side of it and peek around until you can see the white cloth Samurai who is patrolling around the wooden hut in front of you. When he is walking along the hut on your side, run up behind him and Stealth Kill him. Quickly cancel the animation and go hide between the perimeter and this house in case the Kunoichi spots him. Wait for her to calm down and then stalk and Stealth Kill her as well. Now grab the grenade hidden in the north west corner of the map and then head for the main entrance. Once inside there are two crawlspaces, the one on the right leads to a room with a patrolling Innocent Woman so go into the left one. Do not exit the crawlspace immediately because a guitar-toting Kunoichi will walk into view from the far corridor. As soon as she turns to walk back, exit the crawlspace, run up and hug the right wall to observe her. If the Innocent Woman at the far end is not in sight, quickly run in and Stealth Kill her. Now run up the staircase and grab the health potion above. Lastly, highlight your smoke bombs, arm yourself with the dokuto blades (wait out the effects) and then double jump over the railing so as to land on the stage below to trigger the cutscene and Boss Battle.

Boss Name: Ranzou, Health: 100 Ranzou is not too fierce of an opponent, if you handle him the right way. Start out by dropping a smoke bomb as he rushes in and then unload a full-fledged combo on him. Immediately run up and do a floor attack while he is down. The usage of the dokuto blades will make him very vulnerable to attack due to the poisonous effects. Block when he attacks with a combo and be quick to retaliate. If you need to drink a health potion, run up the stairs to buy enough time to do this. There is one attack you must look out for. If you see a purple diagram start to form underfoot, jump out of the way. This spell that he casts will freeze you momentarily and trust me, it’s not for him to take a picture of you. Be aggressive and use the space to your advantage and Ranzou will perish under your might. If the battle takes longer than a minute and a half then a cut-scene will kick in and Ranzou will escape. If you are short on health then simply try to keep running away from him and use the staircase to buy time.

Grandmaster Item
Decoy Whistle

Mission Stats
Enemies: 11
Innocents: 2

Hidden Items
1x health potion, 1x grenade, 1x decoy whistle

Control the breathing. In…out.

Feel the ki around you. Two opponents up ahead.

Move with the elements. Approach your adversaries with stealth; dispatch them quickly.

Here goes nothing.

Rikimaru recited all this in his head, his thoughts sounding like an odd combination of his own voice and his master Shiunsai’s. He peered through the mass of bamboo shoots that littered the forest, and eyed two black-clad figures.

Ninja, like him.

His grip tightened on his ninja-to, and he crept from his hiding place, crouching low. He approached the nearest ninja, and realized he was holding his breath. He slowly let it out, and–

“I see you,”

the ninja hissed, turning to face Rikimaru, his own sword at the ready.

“How…?”

the white-haired young man asked, then brought up his blade to block his opponent’s downward slice. The clang of metal rang loudly, especially to Rikimaru. To him, it sounded like a death knell, since the second ninja opponent had no doubt heard it. Stupid….

Rikimaru gathered his strength and pushed the ninja back, following up with an upward horizontal slice at the unbalanced opponent. The slice scored the ninja’s shoulder, causing him to fall backward, but not before the ninja thrust his sword at Rikimaru’s gut on his way down. Rikimaru backed up just in time to keep from being skewered.

The ninja rolled backward into a crouching position, then dashed at Rikimaru, who sidestepped the charge. Their swords clashed once again in the process. Rikimaru slashed twice at the ninja’s unprotected back, and was rewarded with two successes. He glanced behind him just in time to see and duck a horizontal slice from the second ninja opponent. Again, he inwardly cursed his stupidity for being too wrapped up in his fight with the first ninja to feel the second’s approaching ki.

He reversed his grip on his ninja-to, and thrust the sword backward, hoping to impale the ninja behind him. His blade only met air, as the ninja dashed around to Rikimaru’s side, delivering a downward slice to Rikimaru’s head. Rikimaru quickly ducked and rolled forward clear of the slash, then gained his footing and renewed his attack on the first ninja.

His opponent proved to be elusive, and before he knew it, the ninja was behind him, slashing at his back before Rikimaru could turn around. In desperation, Rikimaru whipped around and sent a roundhouse kick at his attacker, hooking the sword from the ninja’s hand. Now facing the ninja, he grabbed the ninja’s head and thrust his sword into the ninja’s gut. He dropped the body to the ground, and prepared to finish off his last opponent.

Needless to say, he was surprised to see that opponent already down, and his friend Ayame standing over the body.

“Flunked stealth again, ne?”

she asked sweetly, sheathing her twin kodachi and running a finger through her brown bangs.

Rikimaru thought of Ayame as a little sister…an annoying little sister whose sarcasm he could do without. Both orphans, they grew up together as Azuma ninja in their small village with Tatsumaru, whom they considered their older brother. Rikimaru glared at Ayame in disgust.

“Ayame! I’m in a training test, here! How am I supposed to accomplish this with you interfering?”

Ayame smirked and looked down at Rikimaru’s black-clad opponents, who got up and took off their masks. They were also members of the Azuma village, and served as Master Shiunsai’s assistant instructors.

“It didn’t look like you were doing a very good job, Riki-chan,”

she remarked,

“so I decided to bail you out. What’s the harm in that?”

“He is right, Ayame,”

one of the instructors, Shinsho, informed her.

“This exercise was for Rikimaru’s training. When the time is right, you will undergo the same test, and you will do it alone.”

“Gomen nasai,”

Ayame apologized reluctantly, her eyes downcast.

Kenichi, the other instructor, observed,

“However, Ayame is correct, Rikimaru. The object of the exercise was stealth, and I noticed your approach. Do not forget that we too can sense the ki of others. Your ki generated enough nervous chatter to attract my attention. You must calm yourself and live in the moment.”

Rikimaru took the reprimand with his usual dislike, while pulling the black scarf down to his neck, exposing the lower half of his face.

“Yes, sensei.”

“Your swordsmanchip also needs work. You must defend your flank better, or risk being carved up like a fish.”

“Yes, sensei.”

Kenichi smiled.

“On the other hand, I find no fault with your killing attacks. Had this not been a training exercise with dull blades, I would surely have perished.”

Rikimaru relaxed a bit, relieved he wasn’t a total failure. Only eighty percent.

“Yes, sensei.”

“We will do this again tomorrow, Rikimaru,”

Shinsho ordered.

“For now, head to the target area and practice your shuriken throws.”

“Yes, sensei.”

“And Ayame…”

The sixteen-year-old girl looked sheepish.

“I know, I know…report to Master Shiunsai…”

She turned to the high fence to make her exit, and found Shiunsai standing there, an unhappy look on his face. Ayame let out a startled yelp, and bowed quickly, apologizing profusely.

“Your English lessons started ten minutes ago, Ayame,

” Shiunsai informed her.

“I see you find your peers’ enlightenment to be more entertaining than your own. A ninja is nothing without a honed mind.”

He then dismissed Ayame and the others. Ayame made haste to the dojo to begin her English studies, while Rikimaru and his instructors ventured to the target area.

A ninja is nothing without a honed ki, Rikimaru thought. Guess I’ll have to work on that, or Ayame will never let me live it down.

***

That night, the dojo existed in a state of absolute silence. Even the background chatter of insects and animals was seemingly drowned out.

Rikimaru sat at the center of the dojo, meditating. He almost seemed to be watching a dramatic Kabuki play behind his eyelids. Clearing his mind of extraneous thought was not one of his strong points.

“What do you want?”

he asked Tatsumaru, who entered the dojo.

Momentarily taken aback by the curt greeting, Tatsumaru recovered quickly.

“I wanted to see if you really can cause the dojo to spontaneously ignite from your meditation.”

Rikimaru opened his eyes and shot his friend an unkind glare.

“Very funny. You know I hate to be interrupted. Ayame is lucky she’s still alive after intruding on my weapons training earlier.”

Tatsumaru shook his head.

“That’s my point. You’re too intense. You have to be the most tightly-wound ninja I’ve ever met.”

“Is there anything wrong with taking my training seriously?”

“Actually, I find it hard to think of anything you don’t take seriously. Being focused is one thing. It’s admirable. It’s what makes a good ninja. But you also have to relax a bit, and go with the flow.”

“Yes, I got the lecture from the master.”

“I’m not lecturing, I’m…okay, I’m lecturing. Gomen ne.”

“Everybody’s lecturing me these days. Even Ayame. I’m getting a bit tired of it.”

“As I said, you need to relax. If things are getting too intense, step back from them, then come back with a fresh perspective.”

Rikimaru exhaled sharply through his nose, as he usually did when he felt someone was overstepping his bounds.

“I can handle my problems, thanks.”

Tatsumaru crossed his arms and shook his head.

“See, that’s the thing: you think you can handle everything, Riki, but you can’t.”

“But you can?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“No, but you’re certainly the last one to talk! You’re one of the most reckless people I’ve ever met!”

Their exchange steadily rose the room temperature.

“Not reckless, Rikimaru. Determined.”

“So what’s wrong with my determination?”

By this time, the two ninja were almost nose-to-nose. They stared at each other silently.

“Actually, you’re right, Tatsumaru,”

Rikimaru said at last.

“I do need to get away from this. Konbanwa.”

He turned abruptly, without even a courtesy bow, and stormed out of the dojo, heading down the hill toward the bamboo forest.

Tatsumaru stared after his surrogate brother, then released his breath. He turned away from the exit to the outside, and found himself face-to-face with a straw punching target. He sent a right hook through it, and headed out of the training area as small pieces of wood clattered on the dojo floor.

***

The bamboo forest stretched for acres outside the Azuma village, finally stopping at the edge of a large hill by a creek. Rikimaru sat atop the hill, once again lost in thought. This time, however, he wasn’t meditating.

A sharp bark caused him to look up from his reverie, into the panting muzzle of a large brown husky.

“Semimaru,”

Riki whispered, petting his dog.

“Have you come to scold me as well?”

He couldn’t help but grin as he said this, and chuckled as Semimaru licked his face. The canine always succeeded in cheering him up even at his worst. Rikimaru tightened the purple scarf around his pet’s neck, to which he’d always jokingly referred as Semimaru’s “ninja scarf”.

“No…you’ve just come to cheer me up. You are far too skilled at that, ne?”

Semimaru suddenly turned sharply and looked off to the left past the creek, ears perked. Rikimaru followed suit, having heard the faint sound as well, even above the insects. He slowly rose to a crouch, holding Semimaru in place. The dog dutifully froze in place, ready to investigate once his master gave the okay.

Rikimaru strained his ears to listen for the sound, and heard it a second time. Louder. It sounded as if someone were being struck. Applying gentle pressure to his pet’s shoulder and neck, he instructed Semimaru to move in slowly and silenty. Dogs were prone to chase down their prey, but Rikimaru had taught the husky how to sneak like a cat. The two crept toward a cluster of bushes an eighth-mile down the creek from from the hill, and saw two figures engaging in hand-to-hand combat.

One, whose attire and build suggested a bandit, pummeled the other, weaker-looking old man, who could only raise his arms in a pathetic attempt to shield himself from the abuse.

“I can keep this up, old man,”

the bandit threatened between punches.

“You’re in my territory, so you have to pay the toll!”

Rikimaru released his dog, who barreled at the bandit at full speed, barking and lunging at the legs. The ninja then drew his sword and performed a massive leap over the bush, rolling his body into a moonsault that carried him over the creek. He landed in front of the preoccupied bandit, standing between the thug and the old man, sword at the ready.

“No, you are in Azuma territory, coward, and it is you who will pay for setting foot here!”

The bandit kicked Semimaru aside, then replied,

“Nice speech. Do you really think it scares me? Or him?”

Rikimaru felt a momentary surge of violent ki behind him, and turned in time to deflect a powerful jab aimed at his ribs by an attacker behind him.

An attacker, as it turned out, who happened to be the old man.

Savage moonlight glinted in the old man’s eyes as he sent another punch toward Rikimaru’s face, but the silver-haired ninja blocked it with the dull edge of his ninja-to. He could have used the cutting edge, but he had decided to keep the old man alive long to get the bottom of what was going on. He send a hard forward heel stamp to the old man’s chest, sending his opponent backward into the creek water.

Behind him, he could hear Semimaru viciously attacking the bandit, no doubt clamping his jaws on the nearest available appendage. He quickly turned around to face the bandit, but felt something sharp strike his right shoulder. This caused him to lower his right arm, which held the sword.

He decided not to worry about what had hit him for now, but a glance at the bandit had make it clear: moonlight glinted off a shuriken in the bandit’s hand, and Semimaru was unfortunately unable to keep the bandit from throwing the star-shaped blade.

Rikimaru quickly raised his sword to deflect the second shuriken, but his wounded shoulder compromised his accuracy and made holding the ninja-to difficult. He transfered the sword to his left hand, but that gave the bandit time to rush in and grab Rikimaru’s left arm.

The bandit tried to wrestle the ninja-to from Rikimaru’s grip, and the ninja sent a forward kick at the bandit to shrug him off. He was vaguely aware of the old man getting back to his feet and joining the fray.

However, he didn’t anticipate the old man punching his shoulder wound. The sudden wave of pain caused Rikimaru to let go of his sword, and the bandit quickly claimed it for his own. He stepped back, gripping the handle tightly, and thrust the blade toward Rikimaru’s chest. Rikimaru sidestepped the blade, and grabbed the old man by his kimono, pulling him into the path of the thrust. The old man was run through, and Rikimaru used this as a distraction to deliver a hard punch to the bandit’s jaw. The bandit was sent to the ground, the sword sliding out of his dying victim in the process.

Semimaru leapt at the bandit, trying to bite at the man’s neck, but the bandit again shrugged him off, and this time made a half-hearted slash at the dog with the sword, slicing it across the ribs. Semimaru fell to the ground with a yelp and rolled, trying to protect his wound.

“Semimaru!”

Rikimaru reacted with rage and tossed his the old man to the side, then ran to his pet’s side as the bandit took off over another nearby hill, ninja-to in hand.

He looked up as two familiar figures, Tatsumaru and Ayame, rushed to his side.

“What happened?”

Ayame asked.

Rikimaru gritted his teeth.

“I was set up,”

he replied simply.

The dying old man cackled for a few moments, then coughed up blood. He thought the whole thing was hilarious until the end.

“Based on your descriptions of the two men who attacked you, Rikimaru,”

Master Shiunsai announced in a calm voice to his pupils,

“it would seem they are not a bandit and beggar, respectively. Rather, they are ninja like yourselves, practicing the art of sichiho-de.”

Rikimaru, Ayame, and Tatsumaru nodded. Sichiho-de, or ‘seven disguises’, referred to the art of deception though concealment of identity. The ninja tradionally used a variety of possible disguises, far more than the most common seven from which the practice derived its name.

“That would explain why the two were so adept at fighting,”

Rikimaru observed.

“But why would they go through all that trouble in order to steal my ninja-to?”

And wound my dog? he thought ruefully.

Shiunsai pondered that for a moment.

“Any number of reasons are equally likely,”

he replied at last.

“Perhaps the man stole the sword as a last-ditch attempt to gain victory over you. Perhaps he and his accomplice wished to test their skills. Or,”

and he paused for effect, gaze locked on his students,

“they wanted to get our attention, and inform us of their presence. The attack could very well have been a challenge from one ninja ryu to another.”

His students digested this information.

“Does it really matter why they did it?”

Ayame asked in her usual eager-for-action manner.

“They stole from us, so we gotta get the sword back, an’ teach ‘em a lesson!”

“The reason matters, young Ayame,”

the master reminded her.

“Motivation drives all actions, no matter how small. Determining the reason for one’s action allows us to predict that person’s future actions. And the people in question, after all, are ninja themselves. If any reason at all exists behind the theft of Rikimaru’s weapon, it is not one we should take lightly.”

“Yes, Sensei,”

Ayame conceded, her eyes downcast.

Tatsumaru was still curious.

“So…what is our course of action, Master?”

“Ayame is correct that the theft shall not go unanswered. Azuma village is merely a community of farmers and craftsmen as far as most outsiders know. Only Lord Gohda and some of his trusted subordinates know that we are a community of ninja. This knowledge is very deadly in the hands of enemies. We must ensure that this development does not become our undoing.

“Tatsumaru,”

he told the eldest disciple,

“you must seek out the enemy ninja’s encampment, and return to us with information on their location, number, and structure. Do not engage them in combat unless you are forced.”

Tatsumaru stood up and bowed, accepting his orders.

“I will carry out my mission, Sensei.”

As Tatsumaru walked toward the weapons room, Shiunsai turned to Rikimaru and Ayame.

“You two have not completed your training as full Azuma ninja, so it would be dangerous to send you on this mission.”

The two trainees looked disappointed, especially Ayame.

“Then what CAN we do, Master?”

she asked. You said ‘we’ had to deal with this problem. I assumed you didn’t just mean Tatsumaru!”

Shiunsai patiently waited for her to finish her objection. Ayame’s irreverence was always her shortcoming in some respects, but it also allowed her to speak her mind. Silencing her would only waste her considerable energy.

“The two of you will be held in reserve until Tatsumaru’s return. Depending on what he has to report, you may be needed. So your oders for now, are to wait.”

***

So Rikimaru and Ayame waited for their brother’s return. And waited. And waited. By midnight of the following evening, they were tired of waiting.

They gathered in the weapons room of the dojo, in full uniform as they had planned. What they were about to attempt would be difficult to say the least: sneak out of a ninja village in the dead of night. But their brother might be in trouble, so they gathered their weapons.

Rikimaru selected another ninja-to from the collection of swords on the wall. It wasn’t his favorite, which was stolen, but it would have to do. It was basically the same weapon as the one which was missing. However, to Rikimaru, it wasn’t as “broken in”. It felt unfamiliar. This only reinforced his desire to face the ninja who had stolen his weapon.

Ayame slipped both kodachi into their saya with savage glee. She had boh of her favorite weapons with her, and she was going to enjoy using them. So what if she had never used them outside of weapons training exercises? How could a real life-or-death situation be much different?

The two students also chose copious handfuls of shuriken, blowgun darts, and tetsubishi. They concealed the weaponry in their outfits, pulled their masks over their faces, and nodded to each other, ready to go.

Once they left the dojo, a they put their stealth training to use getting past the other cabins and across the wooden bridge to the bamboo forest. Their efforts went off without a hitch, even though they were unaware that they weren’t fooling anyone.

Shiunsai watched their departure from the dojo. He wished them luck in finding Tatsumaru.

***

“Are you sure he went this way?”

Ayame asked for the umpeenth time as they made their way across the stream and over the hill.

“Yes, I’m positive,”

hissed Rikimaru through his teeth. He’d lost his patience the second time his companion asked him that.

“But you don’t really know where it is they went, just the general direction. Reeeal brilliant.”

“Well, you asked if the bandit-ninja went this way, and my answer was ‘yes.’ Now kindly stay silent for two minutes so I can think!”

“You’re going to track them…how? I noticed you left Semimaru behind.”

“He’s injured, in case you forgot. I’m going to locate them by finding their ki.”

Rikimaru waited a few moments with a murderous glare for Ayame to stop laughing.

“Quiet!”

Ayame wiped her eyes and snorted. “

You? You can’t even control your own ki; how do you expect to track a bunch of ninja?”

“If you have any better ideas, I’m listening.”

“You always tell me to shut up.”

“Because you always talk, with nothing worthwhile to say.”

“At least I’ve mastered stealth. You couldn’t sneak up on a rock without it sounding an alarm for everyone to hear.”

“Because I’m just that good, loser.”

“Ayame, we cannot afford to bicker amongst ourselves. Once we find our enemies, and return Tatsumaru and the sword safely to our village, we can insult each other as much as we want. Not before. Our mission takes priority.”

“Whatever.”

Rikimaru suddenly jerked his hand up to rivet Ayame’s attention, and he looked over his left shoulder.

“I feel something,”

he hissed, gradually lowering his position until he was crouched behind a cluster of bushes.

“You sure it’s not your tummy growling?”

Ayame whispered back, but she also slunk into the underbrush.

“Do you feel it too?”

Riki asked her, his voice even quieter.

Ayame nodded, and slowly unsheathed her kodachi.

Rikimaru reached into his dogi and drew his bamboo blowgun and a poison dart. He closed his eyes, mentally blotting out the background forest chatter. He tried to focus on the extraneous ki he felt, and any sounds that would give away the intruder’s presence.

He realized he was holding his breath again, and let it out quietly. Holding his breath was a bad habit he’d been trying to break himself of for years.

However, historically, things had a habit of going wrong whenever he let out his breath, so he raised the end of his blowgun to his coth-covered mouth, and prepared to fire it at where he guessed the stranger was.

He glanced over to Ayame and found that she was gone.

“Kiai!”

she shouted behind him, and Rikimaru quickly rose and found her attacking the newcomer, throwing him to the ground and pressing her blades to his neck.

“Please! Let me go!”

the man pleaded, and Riki tried to get a closer look at him. The man appeared to be a peasant from a nearby village, but given his experience last night, he wasn’t going to take anything at face-value.

“Identify yourself,”

Riki ordered.

“I…I am Watanabe Taro. I live in the village j-just beyond the hill! I have a wife and child! I–”

“Can I kill this guy?”

Ayame asked Riki.

“He’s getting on my nerves.”

“You can if he turns out to be a ninja,”

Rikimaru replied.

“Let him up.”

The man was forced to his feet, so the two ninja can get a better look at him in the moonlight.

“N-ninja?”

he stuttered.

“I swear I’m not one of them! I can prove it!”

Rikimaru looked him over.

“All right, I’m listening.”

Taro took a breath.

“Th-thank you, sir. As I said, I–”

A whistle of air and a loud thunk cut of his words, and Taro fell to his knees.

Riki and Ayame stepped back immediately. They saw an arrow buried in Taro’s back.

“That can’t be good,”

Ayame commented.

Rikimaru drew his ninja-to. The two Azuma ninja looked around warily. “Show yourselves,” Rikimaru ordered.

Another arrow answered him, burying itself in the tree trunk right next to Rikimaru’s head. Its angle revealed that it was shot from the branches above them.

Four figures emerged from the shadowy underbrush, dressed in camoflaged dogi that rendered them almost invisible against their surroundings. Without a word they converged on the two young ninja, weilding swords while their brethren in the trees loaded arrows into bows.

The Azuma ninja rolled away from their attackers into the forest where they would have more cover. The enemy ninja quickly separated the two, putting the Azuma very much on the defensive.

Rikimaru clashed swords with two of his camoflaged opponents, who guarded a little too well for his tastes. They matched him for swordsmanship, but luckily they were unable to get past Rikimaru’s own guard.

Ayame, meanwhile, had better luck driving her two enemies back, since her erratic slices were much harder to anticipate and block. She scored several slashes on them, getting past their guard. She ran to a tree, leaping to the trunk and backflipping off of it into her opponents’ midst. A downward slash, sent one to the ground, which left one.

Rikimaru rolled backward to give himself more room, all the while drawing a handful of tetsubishi and tossing them to the grass at his enemies’ feet. The ninja failed to notice the caltrops until they stepped on them and injured their feet on the spikes. The young Azuma ninja took advantage of the preoccupied attackers and dashed back toward his foes, slashing at them with his sword and taking care not to step on the caltrops himself.

Ayame yelped as her opponent sliced across her arm, drawing blood. The camoflaged ninja chuckled at her injury, and moved in for the kill. Ayame looked up at the trees for a moment, then quickly sidestepped her attacker’s charge. She buried one of her kodachi in his back, then used him as a human shield against the arrows raining from the trees.

Having also noticed the archers’ resumed barrage, Rikimaru climbed a tree and perched between several branches. Once again drawing his blowgun, he loaded a dart and took aim. He brew out his breath sharply and shot the dart at one of the archers, scoring a direct hit in the shoulder. The archer dropped the bow and held his wound as the poison invaded his system. He fell out of the tree and landed rather badly on the ground, breaking his leg.

Meanwhile, Ayame busied herself searching her human shield for any useful items. Aside from a shuriken, he didn’t have anything worthwhile to share, so she dropped his arrow-ridden corpse and rolled behind a tree for cover.

“These idiots ambush us, then don’t even have the decency to carry any grenades we can use? That stinks!”

She flung the shuriken at one of the archers, missing him but breaking his bowstring. It kept him from firing any more arrows.

Rikimaru wished his perch in the tree provided more cover from arrows. He quickly climbed further up the tree, arrows missing him by scant inches, and found a secure perch on a particularly strong branch. He judged the distance between his present location and that of the closest sniper, and moonsaulted off his branch. He landed on the same branch as the archer, and was pleased to find that their combined weight was too much for the limb, which cracked loudly under the pressure.

The branch gave way, sending the two falling toward the ground. They both landed perfectly, but Rikimaru was the faster to recover. He brought the blade of his ninja-to downward upon the archer’s neck before the latter could load another arrow into the bow.

The other archer, who decided his usefulness as a sniper had ended now that he had a broken bowstring, dropped out of his tree to contront the Azuma upstarts. He ran toward Rikimaru, but only got halfway there before a kaginawa wrapped around his legs. Ayame yanked on the grappling rope and sent the ninja falling on his face. She crossed the distance between them, bundling her rope back up before finishing off the ninja with her kodachi.

“Is that all of them?”

Rikimaru asked, walking to Ayame.

“I hope so. C’mon, we’ve wasted enough time.”

Ayame turned to leave, then saw Rikimaru looking around alertly, frozen in place.

“What are you doing? What’s goin’ on?”

She then noticed the fog that had begun to shroud the forest.

Rikimaru studied the mist quizzically.

“I–I don’t know…but keep your guard up.”

The fog thickened until it surrounded them like a smokescreen. That seemed to be a good description, in fact, as the two Azuma ninja began to feel drowzy. It was a cloud of sleeping gas. They staggered backward weakly, then fell to the ground, losing unconscious.

A shadowy figure emerged from the center of the fog, rather pleased with his handiwork.

***

Master Shiunsai felt a presence of a different kind in his home at the dojo. He opened his eyes and stood up, grabbing his walking stick and unsheathing its hidden blade. He turned around and faced the intruder who had entered.

“It’s me,”

Tatsumaru assured his master, stepping into the light. He looked injured, as if he’d taken on an entire army and won through sheer accident.

“I’ve just returned from my mission. I found where they were hiding, but they found me, so I had to grab the sword and fight my way out.”

He held up Rikimaru’s ninja-to, and gratefully handed it to his sensei. The blade’s tip was covered in blood.

“I confronted their master, a man named Abano, and killed him in mortal combat. I was injured, however, and it’s taken me a full day and night to return.”

Shiunsai nodded at this information.

“How many were there in the clan?”

“Roughly twenty. A few survived, but they escaped into the hills. Without organization, they probably won’t be a threat, but they could still endanger the nearby villages.”

“I see…and did this clan have a name?”

“Abano said they were called ‘The Mist’.” Tatsumaru studied his master’s face. “Master…you seem troubled.”

Shiunsai let out a breath.

“Rikimaru and Ayame went looking for you at midnight. There is no telling what they may have found.”

To be continued…

Objective: Assassinate, Stealth Required
Boss: Garan

You begin the level standing on a wall. Turn around and jump to the next wall which was behind you. Keep running along it until it bends right, carefully continue on. When you reach the end, jump over to the next wall on the left. Be careful not to be spotted by the thief armed with a bow who patrols below.

At an appropriate time take him out, and then immediately jump on to the house. Beyond you there is another house – make a big jump, doing your best to reach the edge of the house, and crouch. On the other side there is a vigilante patrolling. Eliminate him and go over the wooden platform in front of you. Ahead of you is a series of platforms with a well between them.

Take the left one, continuing along the null space, make a further two jumps over another platform and onto a small house. Crouch upon the house immediately and behold – soon you’ll see Garan walking around another house near in front of you.

Try to find a good opportunity to assassinate him; or wait for him to come as closer as possible, then just throw a shuriken in the distance in order to make him stop and look at the direction where the shuriken has hit. Then just drop down, go behind him, and wait for him to return to “?” mode. Now slash him quickly. Congratulations, you have beaten the level!

Shiunsai saw the dead body of Kurosama laying at his feet. The corrupt master of the Azuma sect clutched the ancient blade, Izayoi, in his cold white hand. Shiunsai was exhausted, and colapsed to the ground, trying to regain his breath. Summoning what little strength he had left, he stretched his hand towards Izayoi. His hands clasped the blade, and he wrenched it from the cold body of the traitor, Kurosama. As Shiunsai held the ancient sword of the Azuma sect, he remembered the tradgedy that had brought him to this point…
Shiunsai was practicing his Kata in one of the dojos of the Azuma village. The sun was just beginning to set as the Masters young son, Tatsumaru, called to him.

“Shiunsai! The master wishes to see you!”

Shiunsai shook his head in regret that Tatsumaru had to call his father by his rank, and could not simply call him father.

“Coming Tatsumaru.”

Shiunsai abandoned his practice, and left towards the house at the top of the hill in the village. As he walked to the top, he heard somthing creeping after him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tatsumaru run almost silently through a thicket of bamboo trees. Shiunsai smiled to himself as Tatsumaru tried to sneak up behind him. He pretended not to know that he was there, until the last moment when Tatsumaru struck with a kick, and Shiunsai reacted by dodging the attack easily and sweeping Tatsumaru over with a kick of his own. Shiunsai dropped a smoke bomb and dissapeared in a cloud of gas, leaving Tatsumaru laying on the grass, completely beweildered. When Shiunsai reached the Masters house, he knelt on one knee. “

You wish to see me, Master Kurosama?”

“Yes,”

the master replied.

“A gaurd at Lord Gohda’s castle was murdered today, with a golden arrow. There was a scroll around the arrow, addressed to you.”

Kurosama revealed a scroll from behind his back, and handed it to a puzzled Shiunsai. Shiunsai read the scroll to himself.

“Shiunsai,
you have no chance against us. My clan has already infiltrated yours. You are no longer safe in your own village. The Azuma will die come nightfall. All of their work will be burned in the ashes of their own village. The reign of Gohda is over, and all will make way for Darktiger, Lord of the Kumani ninja. All will cower before him, and on the thirteenth day of his reign, Lord Mei-Oh will arise, and the world will be swollwed in eternal death, with only those who serve the great Lord Mei-Oh sha ll live. There is no point running either, there is no escape. You cannot stop this, but my warning is not without reason. I warn you because your true father is not who you believe, but your true father is the one who leads us into alliance with Lord Mei-Oh. If you seek sanctuary in the darkness, then come meet us the shrine located in the Bamboo forest of the Raven. If not, you will die with the rest of your pathetic ninja.”

Shiunsai lifted his head and looked up at his master.

“I have read it Shiunsai. I know what it says. I seek you out because I need you to help me. Take my son and your student, Rikimaru, to Gohda castle. Seek refuge there. I will go to confront this force in the shrine they speak of.”

“But master, they said there is no escape. Why don’t you take all the ninja to the shrine to attack them?”

“Shiunsai, do not ever undermine my authority! If I take all the Azuma ninjas to the shrine, we will not be able to attack with stealth, and the apparent traitors among us will attack us and we will be crippled. No Shiunsai, I will go alone, and you will go to Gohda castle. Now hurry, it is almost nightfall.”

Shiunsai began to walk out of the house when Kurosama called after him.

“And Shiunsai, don’t tell any other ninja of your mission. You never know who is loyal.”

With those words in mind, Shiunsai leapt out of the house, and onto the rooftops of the Azuma village.

Shiunsai swept along the rooftops like a shodow caught in the wind, and made his way to his house. When he arrived, he swung down off the roof and moved inside the house. He silently crept towards the back wall were there was a hidden compartment, known only to him. Inside were several things that his father had left to him. Shiunsai now wondered who his real father was. He thought on it a moment, then shook his head, and focused on the task ahead. He reached inside the compartment and retrieved a scroll his father had left him. It had magical powers, and increased the users speed multiple times. He also took his fathers talisman, a power talisman that increased strength and resiliance. With these items hidden on his body, he shut the secret compartment and walked to a shelf nearby. From the shelf he took several shuriken, and a handful of smoke bombs. Satisfied he was prepared, he left to find Tatsumaru and Rikimaru. Shiunsai first went to where Rikimaru could be usually found training and, by a stroke of luck, Rikimaru and Tatsumaru were both there, training together. Shiunsai crept up near the two young ninjas, and whispered to them.

“Rikimaru, Tatsumaru! Come here!”

Rikimaru was startled, and spun around ready to fight. When he saw his Master, he relaxed and ran over to him. Tatsumaru followed.

“I’m glad you are safe. I feared you would be hurt.”

Shiunsai said. Rikimaru asked

“Why would we be hurt? We were only practising in the Village.”

Shiunsai shook his head and replied

“Listen to me, both of you. What I am about to tell you, you must not tell anyone else. Do you understand?”

The boys suddenly grew serious, and nodded in agreement. Shiunsai then recounted the happenings of the day.

“And now that you know, I must ask a favour of you both. I need you both to continue to Gohda castle, alone. I want to follow our Master to the shrine to help him. You have both been trained well, and can make it on your own.”

“But Shiunsai!”

Rikimaru exclaimed.

“Master Kurosama said you were not to follow him!”

“Rikimaru, listen to me. I must do what I believe is right. I would give my life for our master, but I cannot follow orders that would get him killed. If all that I do is follow orders, I am no longer human, but just a drone of the master. Now I must make my own choices, just as you must make your own now to, Rikimaru. I ask you to do as I say, and go to Gohda castle as the master asked.”

Rikimaru looked down at the ground, and simply nodded his head. He pulled up his mask over his mouth, and dissapeared without a word. Tatsumaru watched him go, and said goodbye to his long time friend Shiunsai, and vanished after Rikimaru. Shiunsai followed them with his eyes until they were no longer visible, and disappeared into the night, on his way to Raven Shrine.

Shiunsai arrived at the shrine about half an hour later. He had trailed the Master Kurosama all the way from the village, but was surprised to see Kurosama traveling with a strange ninja. Shiunsai has never seen the ninja around the village. He wore a black uniform, with red designs on it. He wore a mask of a bird of some kind. He also carried a single blade. His long dark hair flowed behind him as he flew through the forest to the shrine. Shiunsai watched the ninja follow Kurosama into the building that contained the shrine. Shiunsai crouched low as he moved towards one of the windows in the wall. He looked through, and saw that the stranger was not there. But, this was not the most shocking thing that Shiunsai saw. For there, kneeling in prayer to the dark gods, was Master Kurosama. Shiunsai leapt through the window and yelled out in rage.

“You will die Kurosama!”

Kurosama opened his eyes in shock, saw Shiunsai and drew his sword.

“so, the Azuma ninja decided to show up after all. Well, will you be joining us, or do you choose to die.”

“I am no the one who will die, traitor!”

“Well well well, big words for a small ninja. You really think you can beat me? LETS FIND OUT!”

Then Kurosama drew Izayoi from its sheath and dashed towards Shiunsai, who reacted by sidestepping the attack and swept Kurosama off his feet. This bought enough time for Shiunsai to use the Talisman of Power. Kurosama was up on his feet, but could see the strange power emanating from his rival. Scared, Kurosama called out for some guards, and four ninjas in black uniforms sprung out of no-where. One jumped from behind Shiunsai, but the wily ninja simply spun through 180 degrees and threw on of the shuriken at the throat of his assailant. The lifeless ninja fell to the ground clutching his throat, and Shiunsai turned to face the rest of his enemies. Kurosama singled them forward. Two of the ninjas wielded deadly katanas, and struck out at Shiunsai. Shiunsai used his armoured gloves to deflect the blows but was still driven back by their lightning blows. Then, summoning the strength from the talisman, Shiunsai dealt one of them a deadly blow to the head. The second ninja continued his assault, bu t he was no match for Shiunsai one on one. After Shiunsai killed him, the third ninja drew a weapon that Shiunsai had never seen before. It was like a chain whip with a deadly blade on the end. The ninja began to move as though he was dancing, with the whip-blade flowing through the air like a mesmerised dragon. Shiunsai saw he was out of striking distance, so he threw a shiruken, but it was knocked out of the air by the ninja. Shiunsai was surprised, but threw another five towards the deadly ninja. These to were knocked down, and Shiunsai saw that shirukens were not the answer. Then he got an idea. Shiunsai used the lightfoot scroll to dash forward with such speed that the ninja never saw it coming, and was struck down and killed before he could react. Then Shiunsai turned his gaze on Kurosama. Kurosama drew back slightly, but raised his sword, Izayoi, ready to attack. The two rivals lunged forward at the same instance, and were locked in deadly combat. Slashes and thrusts flew from the hand of Kurosama over and over again, but Shiunsai matched the blows perfectley, blocking them with his armoured gloves. Shiunsai finally manged to throw Kurosama off balance by grabbing his wrist and pulling him forward, but Kurosama used the momentum to flip over his opponents head. Shiunsai spun around to see Kurosama making a slash for his head. Shiunsai did a back-flip kick and knocked Izayoi out of Kurosama hands. Kurosama made a dash for his fallen blade but, just as he recovered it from the floor, he turned to see a fist come flying down, to send him to the underworld. With his dying breath, Kurosama utterd

“Your father….is….Oni…ka….”

With that, Kurosama coughed up his last blood, and died at the hand of Shiunsai… Shiunsai stood up, after having regained his thought. He started to walk away when he heard a laugh behind him. He turned, and there stood the stranger in the bird mask. He started to laugh harder as he threw his mask away, to reveal he was blindfolded, but could still see.

“Well done. Ha ha ha. Very well done. You performed exactly as I predicted. But now you must die.”

Shiunsai could do nothing but lay down his life, for his energy was spent. The stranger rushed forward when Shiunsai saw a lightning fast dart fly past his head and into the throat of the masked stranger. The strange assailant fell to the ground, clutching his throat. Shiunsai saw Rikimaru, standing with a blow gun to his mouth. Rikimau said,

“Tatsumaru went to warn Lord Gohda of the demon, Mei-oh, but I couldn’t follow orders I knew you were going to get killed, otherwise I would just be a drone, of the new master of the Azuma ninja.”

Shiunsai smiled. “Thank you Rikimaru. I owe you my life. But our work here is done. Lets leave.” The two Azuma ninja left the shrine, and as they did, a voice said

“Curse you Rikimaru. We will meet again, and when we do, it is your turn to die.”

With those words, Onikage vanished into the night…

Enemies: 18
Max Score: 665
Ninja Item: Poison Antidote

This really is a great level. Not only can you explore left and right, but vertically. In that respect it is quite similar to Demon Mountain, but since it is a night time mission it is far superior in every way. Two thing to look out for on this level; often guards for no reason enter !? mode. This is probably due to enemies in close proximity to Gohda’s elite guards. Secondly be careful killing ninja on roofs. It is very easy to get the attack angle wrong and they enter !! mode – highly annoying. Using a crouched attack from behind is the best recommendation.

Turn around. On the wall in front of you is a sword ninja (1). Grapple up and kill him. Head out the door to your right. Halfway down the steps patrols a bowman (2) and a spear-man (3) to your left beneath the stairs. Return to your starting position and make your way up the stairs ahead. Patrolling at the top is a sword soldier (4). pass through the doors to your right ignoring the spear soldier in front of you. Grapple and hang on the roof to your left. Wait patiently for a bow ninja (5) to appear.

Now head back down and kill the spear-man (6). Grapple back to the same building to find a bow ninja (7) at the roof’s apex. Return to the courtyard and kill the sword soldier (8) who patrols left of your position near one of Gohda’s guards. Past Gohda’s guard in the corner is a scatter item, poison antidote, and a scythe ninja (9) on the roof above. Return to the courtyard and head to the far north-east corner of it. Grapple up to the roof above.

Below in the next courtyard is a spear soldier (10). Return to the roof and head left to find a scythe ninja (11). Further down the courtyard is a bow soldier (12). It is very difficult to kill this enemy as a nearby guard like to do the job for you. Nevertheless you can still achieve a Grand Master ranking without him so best not go there. Instead continue west, over the roof, into the next courtyard to find a spear soldier (13) and a sword soldier (14).

Return to your previous thirteenth victim and grapple the roof above. To your left on top of the high roof a bow ninja (15) stands guard. From here head north along the roof and then east. Grapple up to the tiling sticking out form the main castle above. Head left higher up on to the next level. To your left a ninja (17) guards the roof. Continue north to find a patrolling bow ninja (17). Head back to the main castle structure and work your way up. Another bow ninja (18) guards the north-west corner. Grapple on to the next floor to here Kagami’s dream and meet the original Seiryu.

Boss: Seiryu
Health: 130
A nice easy boss to kick off Tatsumaru’s missions. It wont belong until you strike the final hit that send Seiryu plummeting to his death. They will not be a tough pair of shoes to fit! Block and attack strategy, as always, works a treat.

Reason for Refusal Are the Sister Bells Rin helps Ayame to escape from her prison. Ayame asks Rin to deliver a message to one of Gohda spies. Find Shinogi and retrieve the sister bell.

Recommended Items
1x health potion

Walkthrough
Difficulty: Normal

The mission itself actually isn’t too hard, as long as you advance both carefully and patiently. Most maneuvers will consist of waiting, followed by a quick run in order to reach your victims punctually. In this level Ayame’s poisonous swords (Dokutou) can be found.
Move a little forward in order to adjust the camera to the slope so you can see a masked ninja next to the stairs. Once he starts walking, run up to him and kill him. Turn left, slide the door open and run down the stairs. Lean against the wall by pressing R1 when next to it. Turn the camera, so you can look around the corner. You’ll see two guards patrolling. Do not rush to kill them separately! If you wait patiently they’ll come pretty close to you, but without being able to spot you. Once both of them turn their backs on you standing very close, perform a double stealth kill on them. If you have difficulties performing the double stealth kill use a poison rice to lure them both into a convenient position. Don’t mind the other two guards’ conversation in case you triggered it. You will not be able to reach them in time, but luckily their conversation distract them from walking around the area and thus spotting you more easily. This is to be used to your advantage. Place yourself at the stairs and jump or grapple to the little ledge on the left. There’s a masked ninja on the ground that will soon turn left and walk off. As soon as he is out of sight, jump down at the very end of the ledge and kill him, but make sure not to be seen. Crawl through the little hole in the wall to your right and pick up the red box which contains a talisman. Be careful not to run through the water, otherwise you’ll alert the ninja located on the platform in the upper corner of the room. Grapple up to the ledge. Wait for the enemy to turn around, then pull up and stealth kill him.

Press against the revolving door and immediately lean against the wall to your right, so you can watch the kunoichi coming up to you. As soon as she passes you by, you’ll be able to perform an easy left side stealth kill on her. Pick up the egg and the rice ball on the small shelves left of the revolving door. Follow the corridor the kunoichi was patrolling until you reach the stairs. Crouch down and observe the approaching shimatsuya. Once he passed by, kill him.Next, turn left and hug the wall to your right. This gives a good overview on what is happening inside the next room. Kkill the patrolling guard, when he turns away. Grapple to the upper room with the huge oven and lean against the wall to your left. There is a kunoichi and a masked ninja observing the area. The ninja will remain on the same spot, but the kunoichi walks up and down. She’ll turn her back on you, just to turn around again. Be cautious! When the ninja turns his back on you and the kunoichi walks to the back corner of the room, rush out and first kill the ninja, then kill the kunoichi. This room also contains a red box with two bell darts in it which is located on the left side of the lowered level. Watch out for traps! Don’t step on the trapdoors and make sure not to be hit by the spear once jumping down there.

When you’ve collected all the items you need, return to the room that you entered through the revolving door. Crouch at the door so it slides open only a bit and you can peek through it. Stealth kill the guard as he turns away and immediately carry his dead body back into the room you came from. For this purpose, better cancel the stealth kill animation by pressing circle. Quickly climb the platform and crouch down on the very right, so the approaching kunoichi won’t spot you. Kill her. There’s another red box on the platform containing fireworks. Advance until you reach the next stairway. Crawl up the stairs to see what’s in the next room. You’ll find a shimatsuya and a masked ninja supervising their surroundings. The ninja will remain in the room, walking back and forth, whereas the shimatsuya will temporarily leave the room. In order to make sure the shimatsuya won’t bother you killing the ninja, use Ayame’s Kodama Hiroi move. It helps you making out their pathways. After the shimatsuya has left the room, he’ll turn around once more. Now, as soon as he walks off in direction of the corridor, wait for the ninja to turn left, then stealth kill him. Cancel the stealth kill animation and rush to the shimatsuya who is facing the stairs, kill him too.

Ayame’s poisoned blades are hidden in the room located at the bottom of the hallway to your left. This room also contains a health potion. Pick up both items and return to the corridor in which you just killed the shimatsuya. There’s another revolving door giving way to Shinogi.

Boss Name: Shinogi , Health: 100 Shinogi isn’t to difficult. Block his attacks and counter with your own. His only useful move is where he smashes the wooden flooring with his foot, leaving Ayame vulnerable to attacks. Its very similar to your own smoke bomb attack. Retreat and use the health potion if you have difficulties.

Grandmaster Item
Ninja Armour

Mission Stats

Enemies: 14
Innocents: 0

Hidden Items
2x red box, 1x egg, 2x health potion, 1x rice ball

Crossing the Checkpoint, no rewards Find Mimizuku outside Lord Gohda’s Checkpoint to deliver the secret message for Ayame.

Recommended Items
3x blowgun

Walkthrough
Difficulty: Normal

When you begin, grapple up onto the tall left gatepost and crouch. Now observe the scene below you. There is an archer stationed atop the little watchtower and another patrolling guard beneath him. Wait for the Archer to turn his back and then double jump over and Stealth Kill him as you land. Immediately crouch after doing so and now drop down on the patrolling guard beneath you and Stealth Kill him as well. Now roll back towards the gate and grapple up on the left most portion of it next to the rock wall. Turn around and remain crouched and now look across at the spear wielding guard who comes in and out of view behind the dividing wall ahead. Highlight your blowgun and then kill him with a shot while he is walking from left to right and stops. If you already have the Hawk Eye Ability then you’ll also be able to see the dog behind him.

Now drop down from the gate and roll to your right up the incline a bit until you hear a guard conversation. At this point immediately roll back and again grapple back up onto the east most portion of the fence next to the wall. Remain crouched and patiently wait for the guard to walk down from your right and stop exactly beneath you. As soon as he turns to walk away, drop down and Stealth Kill him. Now roll forward to the little hut and then grapple onto the roof and immediately crouch. Look at your in game map and position yourself on the SW most corner of this roof and remain crouched. From here you’ll be able to easily observe the patrolling dog while being out of sight from the stationary guard on the other side of the roof. Highlight your blowgun again and kill the dog with a shot when he pauses and isn’t looking in your direction. (For some reason shuriken from this distance, even with Hawk Eye leave him with 1 HP) Now creep up the roof just high enough so that you can observe the stationary guard below on the other side. Watch his turning pattern and when he turns his back, roll down and Stealth Kill him. Now roll towards your right along the wall and keep going until you are at the eastern most portion of the map. (You should be crouched on a slope) Stay here and observe a patrolling guard up ahead by the stone monument. As soon as he walks behind the monument, run up and grapple up onto the stone monument and immediately crouch. Now simply watch him from this vantage point and then drop down and Stealth Kill him as he walks back towards the right.

Continue now by crouching and moving slowly to the left(west) until you come to the edge overlooking another patrolling guard below. Watch his pattern and then roll down and Stealth Kill him when his is over by the wall. Crouch again and move forward towards the ledge overlooking the river below and observe another patrolling guard walking along the river’s edge. Also take this time to look across the river and up a bit to see a patrolling Archer who walks up and down the far path. When he is out of range and the guard beneath you is nearby with his back to you, drop down and Stealth Kill him. Now roll all the way to the left(west) along the river and then roll through the river onto the other side and creep up behind the jutting rock on the embankment. Stay crouched behind this rock and wait for the Archer to patrol back down. Wait for him to turn and then double jump over the rock and run up behind him to Stealth Kill him. Now follow his path up to the end and then grapple your way up to the NW corner of the map (upper left) to grab the cannon in the Red Box Item. Now jump back down (don’t walk left along the ledge because you will trigger the cutscene) and run back across the river and head up onto the bridge. Cross the bridge and now head left along the narrow ledge alongside the building and then double jump over to the small outcropping to grab Rin’s demon claws in the Red Item Box. Now simply head to either entrance of the building to trigger the cutscene and complete the mission.

Note:
You can get spotted up to two times and still get an ASSASSIN Ranking provided you Stealth Kill all 10 enemies and are only spotted briefly. However, if you followed my path exactly then you should not have been seen at all.

Master of Assassins Item
Armor

Mission Stats
Enemies: 10
Innocents: 0

Hidden Items
1x cannon, 1x demon claws (Rin’s special weapon)

Dawn approached swiftly. For the guards on watch, this was like a sign from heaven. Having watched the grounds of the merchant’s complex from sundown to now, most of them were exhausted. Most stood wearily alert, but a few had dosed unwittingly off. One of these guards, snoring gently with his back against the wall, was supposed to be watching a certain stretch of rooftop. He wasn’t, and that one mistake would soon cost him his life.

On this certain stretch of rooftop a shadow sat. Melted into the background, it was hardly distinguishable from the gloom around it. It gauged the distance from the eave of the roof to the ground, chose a spot to drop and swung down. The guard was still snoring gently as it hit the ground in a crouched position. After that, it worked quickly.

It came up beside the sleeping guard and spun him around, clamping its hand on his mouth. Before the guard could utter a sound, it drew a long, shining sword from a scabbard on its waist. Flicking the blade out and high into the air, it brought the sword down and plunged it into the guard’s heart. The sentry struggled for a moment, and then was still. Dropping the lifeless body to the ground, the shadow searched it for anything that would be of value to him. Finding nothing, the shadow hurried through a door opposite the wall.

It entered the long hall and crept along the shadowy wall. Stepping briefly into the flickering light of a wall brazier his features were momentarily revealed. A long ponytail hung down behind his head, vying for supremacy with a strong face and high cheekbones. A muscular chest tapered to a lithe waist, and behind this waist hung his sword.

The blade still intrigued him. Given to him by his master and surrogate father only the night before, it was the sign of his leadership of the Azuma Ninja and his mastery of the fighting arts. Called Izayoi, it was rarely used by him, only for silent kills and running enemies. The rest of the time he used his hands and feet, often bringing foes down with a single kick or a well-placed punch.

Moving quickly out of the torchlight, he once more became a shadow. Seeing a small, barely noticeable but man-sized hole in the ceiling, he reached into a pouch at his side, From this he drew a long rope ending in a claw, a hook he used to get virtually anywhere. Swinging it with alarming precision to the edge of the hole, he pulled back hard and fairly flew up towards the roof, where he sensed his real adventure would begin.

He emerged into the predawn light with barely a sound. A light drizzle was just setting up, and the roofs and eaves were slick with rainwater and mist. Any untrained man would have slipped and fallen off the roof to a probable death, but this man ran across the slippery tiles without a falter in his step. He moved onwards, seemingly incautiously determined but inwardly alert.

About halfway along the roof another level jutted about twenty feet upward. Flattening himself against this wall he sneaked silently along it until he came to its edge and peered around. On the other side of the wall a figure stood on the slippery slope of the roof, seemingly unaware and unprepared for an attack. Crouching low, the man advanced along the wall. He crept along silently and saw that the figure was clothed in the deep blackness of the Nyosai ninja, the so-called “merchant’s ninja”. Although this clan was deadly in numbers, their unfaltering alliance to the merchant and nobleman classes made them a subject of constant ridicule.

Standing up silently behind the ninja, the man tapped him on the shoulder. Whirling around, the black-swathed figure was met with a fist in the chin, sending him catapulting off the wall to a sure death far below. The man looked after the falling form, shook his head and whispered

“I wish one of these fools would put up a fight”

Turning slowly, he ran down the roof to an open window that seemed to beckon to him.

Swinging inside this window, he landed silently and looked down the long room. An uninterested-looking guard stared out the door with his back to the man. The ninja on the opposite side of the room selected a shuriken from a pack next to his mysterious sword. Flicking it over his shoulder, he aimed it at the wall beside the guard and let it fly. The star-shaped projectile embedded itself in the plaster alongside the sentry, causing him to turn. Seeing the pony-tailed ninja across the room, he drew his sword and charged.

Anticipating the head-on rush the ninja somersaulted over the guard’s head and landed with his back to him. Spinning, he caught the guard in the back with a vicious roundhouse kick that sent him flying. Struggling to his feet, the guard charged again at the unprepared ninja, catching him in the back with the sword blade and drawing blood. The ninja, grimacing at the painful slash, whirled and said

“So you get a free shot. Well, that was the last straw. Goodbye.”

He grabbed the guard around the neck and lifted him up off the ground, his face expressionless. The guard gurgled as his neck snapped, and then was dropped heavily to the floor. The ninja turned away and listened carefully into the next room. He heard a voice that sounded like it belonged to someone used to giving orders. He couldn’t make out the words, but he knew something was going on. He was about to find out what.

There are 12 different locations and the tiles associated with each can be shown by clicking on the appropriate location above or below.

Tenchu – Shinobi Hyakusen is a compilation of missions developed with the Tenchu: Shinobi Gaisen (Tenchu: Stealth Assassins) mission editor.Only the 2nd Japanese release version of Tenchu: Stealth Assassins has this editor. Acquire (developer of Tenchu: Stealth Assassins, Tenchu: Shinobi Hyakusen and Tenchu 2: Birth of the Stealth Asassins) held a “Mission Editor Contest” and had people from all over Japan contribute their self made missions. Later on the best 100 missions of this contest were selected and released under the name Tenchu: Shinobi Hyakusen .There was no mission limit by participant and so some people have contribute more than 1 mission to Shinobi Hyakusen.

You can choose between 2 playable characters : Rikimaru and Ayame. They don’t have different missions though. Once you have selected your character you are taken to a screen which looks like a board game. On each screen of the selection board are 10 missions. Every 10th mission is more difficult than the previous, and by clearing that mission, you get a special video to enjoy later on. Although it is ideal to finish all 10 missions at a time, since the paths branch in various manners, it is possible to get to the 10th mission without exactly beating all 9 prior missions. Some particular stages even have a hidden mission, and these can only be selected once you clear that mission. Once cleared, a throwing star appears beside the mission enabling you to select that hidden mission. So in fact, if you include these hidden missions, there’s a total of 122 missions to play.

Mission objectives consist of “Find Lord Gohda”, “Assassinate”, “Eliminate”, “Protect the Princess” and “Find the cure for the Princess”. Now the “Find the cure for the Princess” is an objective where you just head out and find the healing herb, just like in the Tenchu: Stealth Assassins “Cure the Princess”.The controls are the same as in Tenchu: Stealth Assassins.You always have the same items in your inventory : grappling hook , 5 shuriken and 3 caltrops.Time limit for each mission is 59:59 minutes, unless the mission creator set a lower time limit. If you don’t finish a mission within time limit, you must replay that stage. By beating a mission within its time limit you get a rating of 1%. If you beat all missions within their time limits your rating is 100% and you unlock a hidden video.

Movies you acquire by finishing every 10th mission
01: Beta version TENCHU promotion video
02: Acquire infiltration report/interview #1
03: Basic actions of TENCHU
04: Acquire infiltration report/interview #2
05: Training Mission Time Attack video
06: Acquire infiltration report/interview #3
07: Tutor for clearing SHINOBI-GAISEN’s AD2030 mission
08: Motion capture video shoot footage of the Manji Cult monsters
09: Highly confidential! How it all started.
10: A slide show consisting of TENCHU artwork.

Written by Reimaru and Selenia.

Release Date North America March 9th, 2004 Europe & Australia March 19th, 2004 Japan

  
New Grandmaster Items Viper Drink – increases strength 3 times, but decreases your health
Flash Bomb – makes everyone within range dizzy New Special Moves Wall Camouflage, the character will lift up a sheet in front of him/her mimicking the environment
Ukemi lets you dodge an attack and counterattack it. New Functions Restart a mission with all of the items previously collected.
Continue the game whenever you die (pits, traps, fights, …). Improved AI Guards will call for help and alert their comrades when the encounter something unusual. It is easier to be spotted. New Cut-scenes

Tenchu: Time of the Assassins is a PSP game released in 2006. In Japan it was called Tenchu: Shinobi Taizen.

Playable Characters
You can play as 31 characters from previous Tenchu games, but only 5 have a proper story mode. All characters are from Tenchu: Fatal Shadows and Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven / Tenchu: Return from Darkness.

Playable characters with a story mode:
Rikimaru, Ayame, Rin, Tesshu, Onikage

Other playable characters:
Tatsumaru, Jyuzou, Shou, Ranzou, Jinnai, Tajima, Yuge Jonosuke, Tadokoro Mifuyu, Ronin, Samurai, Ninja, Kunoichi, Kuroya Ninja, Kuroya Kunoichi, Assassin Villager, Assassin Samurai, Assassin Masseuse, Assassin Woman, Kempo Bouzu, Basket Head, Ninja Dog, Kuma, Policeman, Mr. D CEO, Echigoya, Nasu

Story Mode
Rikimaru, Ayame, Tesshu, Rin and Onikage have a story in the game. Onikage’s story is unlocked after completing the 4th characters’ story mode. Each story mode consists of 5 missions per character.

Rikimaru and Ayame’s stories occurs after defeating Tenrai in Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven / Tenchu: Return from Darkness.
Teshu’s story takes place before the event of Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven / Tenchu: Return from Darkness, when he just started working with Zennosuke.
Rin’s story occurs after the events of Tenchu: Fatal Shadows.
Onikage’s story takes place after the events of Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven / Tenchu: Return from Darkness. He is again on a mission to destroy Lord Gohda.

Mission Editor
The game has a mission editor and you have the following customization options:

Specific playable character or all characters
Choose scenario
Choose enemies
Story Editor

Story Editor
This editor is part of the mission editor and allows to write a mission introduction and up to 3 character dialogues. The dialogues take place at the beginning of the mission, at the beginning of a boss battle and at the end of a mission. You are able to change the character names, select music and add sounds.

Playable Characters
Rikimaru & Ayame

Number of Missions
10

Number of Side Missions
50

Behind every great leader stand two greater ones. But how did these two heads come to be who they are now you ask? Well, they were trained from the best there is of course. Tatsu, let’s call the first one, and Ali for the second, used to be mere learners of their former master. From birth, the grand master raised these two younglings for one purpose in life: to fill his immense shoes. The master always tried to keep them both from a very professional distance, never showing full emotion in front of them and never giving true details of the twos’ upcoming. And each day they were trained harder and more rapidly then yesterday, each time becoming more strapping and clever from the previous day’s experience. But late at night after working hard all day long, Tatsu and Ali would sneak into the master’s sleeping chamber, which was made of perfectly placed straw and pillow fabric to please even the richest of nobles. They would stare into the master’s chiseled face for hours unblinking seeing the very face that would mold their life into whatever strikes his own fancy. Whatever task he would ask, they would do, whatever existence he wanted them to live out, they would live, and they could do nothing but take his orders. This reality infuriated the two into near madness, wishing both their ignorant parents never volunteered them into this position only lead on by the fact that they could always have an occupation to survive on and a rough wooden floor to sleep on. In the morning of training, Tatsu always attempted to drain more information on the master’s political power, and the master would always briefly describe how influential he was to the world, but he never could quite grasp all of the glorious control. Then the master would halt his mutterings by assigning more work to his scholars that would then take a majority of the day to labor off. And this would happen morning after morning, night after night, and the lunacy level rose and rose. Until, one night the line between sanity and insanity became far too hazy.

One night, Tatsu and Ali schemed a devious plan for revenge and power. That night, Tatsu, who had built extremely muscular arms after the years of training, lifted the master over his shoulders from his comfy cot and swiped the master’s favorable grand blade from the sword stand next to the bed. While this was going on, Ali spread the word that the master has ran away and left a note of suicide in his bedroom. Finally, Tatsu had reached a point so deep in the woods; no one could hear the upcoming sounds. Tatsu then lay the slumbering one down and unsheathed his majestic steel after saying a few hums of apologies. But before Tatsu could down his blade, the master woke and immediately rolled out of its way. The master then stood to his feet and realized Tatsu’s diabolical method. But the master was not surprised, for he had perceived history would come back to haunt him some day. The master admitted to Tatsu, that he knew his own apprentice would someday conflict him, for that is what he had done to his former master when he was but a student. Yet there was even a deeper secret held within, the master he had assassinated was Tatsu’s very father and so he decided to take Tatsu under his wing after his father’s death. Tatsu then looked down after hearing this tragic news and sighed towards a fallen bird lying dead on the ground. Each both understood what had to be done and so it was done. The master had a burial in the woods next to the fallen bird. Now Tatsu and Ali had filled his shoes. And now they both had the awesome power they wished for. But as the master had warned, they never quite grasped all of it. They were still standing in the shadows of the great leader. And the shadows were to be their home now, shadows of corruption, guilt, and death.

Tesshu items can be split into 3 main categories. Normal Items (Blow Gun, Grenade, Healing Potion, Poison Antidote, Smoke Bomb, Strength Potion, Throwing Needle), Master of Assassin Items (Bamboo Gun, Disguise, Exploding Arrow, Kumhimo, Magazine, Super Needle) and Mission Only Items (Bow, Egg, Rice Potion, Spear).
Tesshu is an assassin and not a ninja. Therefore Tesshu needs money to buy his items, unlike Ayame and Rikimaru who get their items as a reward for their work from Lord Gohda. Luckily Tesshu is paid for every job he completes.

There are 4 ways to get money. Tesshu is paid upon completing a mission, the rank you gain and the needed time affects the amount of money you get. The most money is of course earned by finishing a mission as quickly as possible and reaching the highest possible rank for Tesshu “Master of Assassins”.

The 2nd way to get money is by picking it up from dead enemies. Most enemies will carry a small amount of money with them. After you killed them their money, if they have some, will drop out their clothes and lay next to them. Simply move over it to pick it up.

The 3rd way is to find brown/grey money boxes hidden in the missions. Look out for these boxes, because they usually hold large amounts of money. All money picked up within a mission is added to your overall amount of money once the mission is completed.

The 4th way is to sell your items back to the shop. After every mission the items you have in your inventory are automatically sold. You can not sell Mission Only Items though (Bow, Egg, Rice Potion, Spear).

Normal Items
Tesshu starts the game with all 7 Normal Item types unlocked. At the beginning he can only choose from 2 Grenades, 3 Smoke Bombs, 2 Healing Potions and 5 needles though. Blow Gun, Strength Potion and Poison Antidote are unlocked but you can’t purchase them because their amount is 0. The store is refilled based upon your ranking.

	Blow Gun Instantly kills an enemy in “!” or “?” mode. Slowly poisones enemies in “!!” or “?!” mode until they have lost 20 health points. Price: 480 Limit: 5
	Grenade Inflicts 40 points of damage on impact. Price: 300 Limit: 15
	Healing Potion Restores your health to 100%. Price: 250 Limit: 15
	Smoke Bomb Explodes in a cloud of smoke when throw that confuses every character in its range for 5 seconds. During this time the enemy is vulnerable to attacks. Price: 200 Limit: 15
	Poison Antidote Certain opponents can poison you. Your health meter turns from red to green when you have been poisoned. The poison will deal a lot of damage to you and every couple of seconds your movement will be interrupted, which makes it a lot harder to escape, block or fight your opponent. Use the Poison Antidote to neutralize the poison. Price: 150 Limit: 15
	Strength Potion Drink it to increase your attack strength. For 15 seconds your attacks will deal more damage. Your character’s upper body will glow red until the Strength Potion wears off. Price: 200 Limit: 15
	Throwing Needle Hold triangle to aim it at an opponent and then release triangle to throw it. Up to 10 points of damage will be dealt. Price: 50 Limit: 15

Master of Assassins Items
There are 6 Master of Assassins Items, one for every of Tesshu’s missions in story mode. A Master of Assassins Item is granted to you, as the name already implies, upon reaching the best possible rank for Tesshu on a mission called “Master of Assassins”. Each Master of Assassins Item belongs to a certain mission. You can’t unlock more Master of Assassins Items by getting that rank on the same mission several times.

	Bamboo Gun The Bamboo Gun kills all normal enemies with one shot, no matter if they see you or not. In boss fights the Bamboo Gun deals up to 45 points of damage. Since you can’t aim the Bamboo Gun press R2 shortly before you shoot the gun. It takes a second until the gun shoots, so best use it when the enemy is a bit further away from you. The closer you stand to your opponent during a boss fight, while shooting the gun, the more damage is dealt. Mission: Return to Zennosuke Price: 1800 Limit: 3
	Disguise Disguises you temporarily as an enemy. The costume varies depending on the mission you are currently playing. Dogs and bosses though will still recognize you as an opponent. The spell wears off after approx. 20 seconds or once you have stealth killed someone. Mission: Go to the House in the Cemetery Price: 1200 Limit: 3
	Exploding Arrow Shoot at an opponent, upon impact the arrow explodes and can deal up to 50 points of damage. Depending on the shooting distance the hit character will fly backwards. Mission: Escape from the Limestone Cavern Price: 750 Limit: 3
	Kumihimo If you throw the Kumihimo at an enemy while he/she is not aware of your presence, the enemy will be strangled and killed instantly. If you use it in fight situations the Kumihimo deals 20 points of damage. Either way you get a cool animation showing how the enemy is hung by a string that Tesshu pulls. Mission: Teach Rikimaru a Lesson Price: 520 Limit: 3
	Magazine Use it to lure enemies. If you throw it within view range of an enemy, the enemy will leave his normal walking route or standing position to go and pick up the magazine. After the enemy picked up the magazine he/she will go back to their original positions. Upon killing an enemy that picked up a magazine you can take the magazine from the corpse, therefore you never need to take more than one magazine on a mission. Mission: Rendezvous with Senkichi by the Waterfalls Price: 1200 Limit: 3
	Super Needle Throw 8 needles simultaneously and inflict up to 80 points of damage. Mission: Assassinate Nasu and Echigoya Price: 900 Limit: 1

Mission Only Items
In every mission you can pick up bows and spears from killed opponents. You can also find special food (Egg, Rice Potion) to recover your health. These items though can only be picked up during a mission and can’t later on be sold or purchased. Items&weapons can be picked up from the floor by simply standing very close to them.

	Bow Pick up from dead archers. Each bow comes with 3 arrows. The bows standard shooting range is quite short, so use Ninja Vision to enhance it. An arrow deals 10 points of damage. Good alternative for Shuriken/Crimson Blades. Hitting an unsuspecting victim with an arrow will not instantly kill him/her if he/she has more than 10 health points.
	Egg By eating it you recover 50 health points.
	Rice Potion By eating it you recover 30 health points.
	Spear The spear has a large attack range and is good to keep opponents in distance. You can’t do many different attack moves with it though. You can perform stealth kill with the spear, but won’t get a stealth kill animation.

Hints
- Shortcut holes you have discovered for Rikimaru and Ayame won’t be there for Tesshu!
- Your targets Nasu and Tokubei are in the big building on the top right of the map.
- Use stealth to open doors.
- Enemies can’t open doors.

Walkthrough
Layout A , Difficulty: Normal
Enemies: 27
Max Score: 990

Tesshu, if you haven’t already experimented, has his own unique way of killing his victims, due to his background in the medical field. He has 6 missions in all which, in most cases, demand a little more from you than Rikimaru and Ayame’s. You will notice from the start that you do not have a ‘kuji’ meter, meaning Tesshu does not have special ninja arts to be earned. However, he does have special skills, which you can find in the Options menu at the title screen. Also, upon choosing your tools, you will note that you must ‘purchase’ them instead of simply taking an allotted amount. Later, as you unlock new items, you will notice that Tesshu has fewer items to earn than Rikimaru and Ayame, but they have their differences, such as my personal favorite, the kumihimo. Use all of Tesshu’s items effectively to be just as much a killing machine as the Azuma are.

When beginning the mission, look to your right to find a spearguard. He will be your first target. Already anticipate that there will be more guards in Tesshu’s missions. This is your ‘reward’ for being able to complete Rikimaru and Ayame’s stories. Climb up the perimeter wall in front of you and head toward the unsuspecting guard. When you’re right over him, look to your left to find another guard patrolling. Wait until he leaves then drop on the spear-guard. Quickly recover and kill the patrolling guard.

From here, climb back onto the wall and observe the area. In the courtyard you will find two guards. For the time being, leave them alone, and head as far north as possible on the perimeter wall. When it ends in a corner, continue on the wall, now heading east about 10 steps and observe. You will find a patrolling samurai and, in a room, a stationary archer. You will need to kill the samurai when he is out of the archer’s line of vision. When the samurai heads east you will notice there is another spear-guard. When the spear-guard turns, drop down on the samurai, recover and kill the spear-guard, then head back for the archer and kill him as well. Continue going around the building where you killed the archer to find yourself in the courtyard again, but this time, from behind. Kill the archer first, then the stationary samurai. You may have to cancel the stealth-kill animation (press circle) during the archer’s demise in order to make it in time. Head northeast from the position of the dead samurai to find a box of throwing needles. From here, climb up the stone wall to your right. Pull yourself up to find an archer at the top of the path. Kill him, then look down to find a spear-guard. Drop down on him for the kill, then enter the wooden picket door. You will notice that this does not require a key this time.

As you enter, hug the right wall to find a samurai. Proceed down the corridor past the downward pathway, drop down, then hug the left wall to spy on an archer. Use the elevated ground as a cover. Continue down the path, hugging the right side wall to reveal a stationary spear-guard. You do not need to engage this enemy because your continuing path is above you. However, this is your call. If you choose to kill him, just past him is a grenade. Use the grappling hook to pull yourself up out of the underground pathways.

Upon your return to the surface, look to the distant north to find a patrolling samurai. Kill him next. Use the houses up ahead to your advantage. Once you kill him, climb back onto the buildings and look between the 4 houses to find another patrolling guard. To the far north there is a guard sleeping. He’s doing no harm, however you must do what you must do, right? From where you stand look to the east to find another perimeter wall, climb onto it and head south to find a single spear-guard. Afterwards climb back up the wall and observe the entrance to the compound being guarded by two spear-guards, one to the left of the door and one to the right. There is no entrance for Tesshu on the roof like there was for Rikimaru and Ayame, so you must enter from either this way or the back door. For safety’s sake, let’s take out the right guard first to avoid detection. Jump onto the roof of the compound and get above the right guard. When the left guard’s back is turned, drop onto the right guard. You will have enough time to kill this man, recover and kill the other guard. Afterwards, enter the compound.

Go through the sliding doors and hug the wall just in front of you, looking to your left, to find a samurai. From here, head south through the next pair of sliding doors. This will interrupt the game with a cut-scene between Echigoya and Tesshu. When the scene has ended, exit the room and head east. Go through another sliding door and hug the left wall to find another samurai. From here, proceed through the hallway looking for a door with a padlock on it to your left. Use the key you got from Echigoya to gain access. Drop down from the entrance and kill the sleeping guard. There is a cat in the room. You can avoid it by following the left wall. At the end of the room use the grappling hook to continue. Go through the sliding doors and up the stairs. Upon reaching another sliding door, immediately hug the left wall, revealing a samurai. From here there are two doors. The one to the left is a dead end, but has a sleeping guard inside. Taking the door to the right will continue your journey. Upon going right you will notice in the distance a cat in the center of the room. There is no real reason to try and avoid it because there are no enemies in that room. You might here another guard yell when he hears the cat, but he’s in another room. Crouch through the hole and enter the next room. To your left will be a sliding door, with a guard inside, while going straight and looking up will continue the path. Once in the compound’s attic, proceed through the doors and hug the right wall to find a spear-guard. When the guard looks right, roll to the left and kill him. Go through the next set of doors to find a drop. Look down to find a samurai. Drop down on him when he least suspects it. From there, go through the final set of doors and drop from the rafters to complete the mission.

Master of Assassins Item
Super Needle

Hints

• Beware of the Martial Artists
• A Sticky Bomb is a useful item

Boss
Onikage – Health: 200

Walkthrough
Layout A , Difficulty: Normal
Enemies: 27
Max Score: 995

Assassinate the Evil Tenrai (Part A) is mostly a linear level, in that you have little
choice about the direction you do things, except for a large cavern which is about a
third of the way into the level. This actually makes the level easy to Grandmaster -
just try and kill all enemies.

First start by killing the Red Jonin to your left. Slowly creep through the broken timbers
and kill the next Red Jonin. Beyond the precipice patrols a Kunoichi with a Red Jonin standing guard.
The best approach is to jump on to the rooftop kill the Kunoichi as the Jonin turns his back.
Quickly retreat behind the hut (collecting a health potion) and kill the Jonin when he
returns to ? mode. Continue onwards and climb up left. This platform provides an excellent killing spot
for the patrolling Kunoichi. You are now close to the big cavern area. Eliminate the Red Jonin nearest the entrance and remain crouched on the corpse – there are many enemies
close at hand. Best bet is to roll left and kill the Kunoichi. Almost directly above her is a ledge upon which
you will find a red box item. Now make you way to the Red Jonin by the crates – kill him.
It is better now to ignore the next Red Jonin and kill the Kunoichi beyond him, then you can return to kill him.

Over the other side of the cavern patrols a Martial Artist and a Kunoichi. Kill them for
extra points if you wish. A grenade can also be found in the bottom left corner of the cavern.
Consult your map and head in the direction of the passageway leading out the other side of the
cavern. Kill the Martial Artist guarding the stairs. Pass up the stairs, keeping a close eye on your ki meter. Two Martial Artists patrol this area.
Bide your time and wait until the nearest enemy reappears before going for the kill. Opposite the cannons
is a hollow where you will find a smoke bomb – always useful! Around the next corner
patrols a Red Jonin – a very easy kill. Pass up the stairs and hug the wall near the top.
Kill the wandering Martial Artist before grappling high above.

Straight ahead is a Martial Artist on a platform, he shouldn’t see you if you roll
right beneath him. Then pop up and disembowel him. Head forward turning left at the end – don’t fall -
and pass over the bridge. Beyond the next corner is a Martial Artist. Head to the platform in front
of you and grab hold of it. Peer around to see a Red Jonin. Take him out when he’s not looking.
Patrolling below this platform is another Red Jonin, it would be unlucky should he have seen you
kill his friend, but this can occasionally happen, so be aware of it. Kill him and pass the crates.
To the left are more crates upon which a rice potion lies. Continue down the passageway
and kill the next Martial Artist.

The passageway opens up to a smallish cavern. Below is a Kunoichi, but be aware of the Red Jonin
who might see you far right. Kill the Kunoichi when she has moved left. After killing both these enemies
there is an opportunity for an impressive jumping stealth kill onto the Kunoichi on the guard tower below.
On the next guard tower is a healing potion. Not far now, continue along. In the next room is a Martial Artist
immediately right, and another who patrols on the left. Once they are dead head to the doors to
face your nemesis Onikage.

The strategy for Onikage is simple. Immediately fire a Sticky Bomb at him, this will be insurance for when
he tries to heal himself. Use attacks wisely and block. The leg sweep combo works well. When he attacks with his
full roundhouse combo (4 or 5 kicks) there is an opportunity to go for a big combo as he is vulnerable.
As soon as he tries to heal detonate the bomb!

Grand Master Item
Decoy Whistle

Special Move
Wrath of Heaven

Hints
- Beware of the Martial Artists
- Kasumi and Shizuku are useful but not essential

Boss
Tatsumaru – Health: 100

Walkthrough
Layout A, Difficulty: Normal
Enemies: 21
Max Score: 875

If you have already played Rikimaru’s version of this level you will already be familiar with design of the level, but of course enemies and items are in different places to his.

There are no enemies in the immediate vacinity so head all the way past the timbers to the precipice. Below patrols a Blue Jonin to your left and a Red Jonin on your right. In this situation always go for the Blue Jonin first, better to risk the Red Jonin seeing you than vice versa on account of the Blue’s kamikaze move. Jump across to the roof (picking up the health potion). When the Blue Jonin has walked to the far end of the hut. Jump off the roof and kill him. Quickly run behind the hut, just in case his friend is alerted. Head back when safe and finish the Red Jonin off.

Head for the passageway and make your way round the corner. Get up on the ledge on your left. From here observe the Red Jonin, and kill him at an appropriate moment, for example when he turns and walks away. Head to the entrance of the main cavern, cling to the wall on your left and have a good peer around the corner. The nearest enemy is a Red Jonin on the wooden walkway. This guy jumps around a bit so watch him a while and plan your move. The best time is when he drops of the walkway and heads left. Next head right through the stone arch to where another Red Jonin is above you. Pop up and surprise him for another kill. Just beyond him on a ledge is a Ninja Rebirth.

Patrolling the other side of the cave is a Blue Jonin and a Manji Cultist, of course you will need to switch weapons if you wish to kill the second of these foe, otherwise just leave them be. However a Grenade will be your reward should you decide to plunder that area. Consult your map and make your way to the corner path leading out of the cavern. The Martial Artist patrolling back and forth by the stairs should present no problem. Climb the stairs and cling to the middle of the wall before heading around the corner. A Martial Artist approaches. If you cling to the wall properly he will start to pass you as he does run out and stealth kill him.

Cling the wall on your right and peer around the corner. A Martial Artist patrols the far corner of the column in front of you as he heads away go for the kill. Pass the cannons and pick up the rice potion on the crates beyond the last. Turn the corner and cling the wall, peer around to see another Martial Artist – another straightforward kill. Pass up the stairs and jump the lip into the next room, clinging the wall immediately left. A martial artist patrols the far end. When he turns to walk right run for the kill. Look above the cannons for the huge platform above you. Grapple up and hang.

Observe the Red Jonin walking up and down the stairs to your left. As he ascends them go for the stealth kill. Pass up the stairs the path goes right, however a smoke bomb can be found to the left. Avoid the pitfall and cross the bridge. Beyond the next corner is Blue Jonin. Jump to the crates and push against the wall, so you can see him easier. Be careful not to fall off the crate and risk being seen. When he turns go for the kill.

If you have not brought the other blades a tricky man-oeuvre awaits. Use the crates to hide from the Manji. As he passes beyond you to the right, he will turn and come towards you. This is your opportunity to run for it. Otherwise switch blades and kill him. Pass around the corner and out of sight. Now cling the next corner and peer around to spy a Red Jonin. As he draws near move back to the middle so he wont spot you. Then as he turns kill him – no problem! Pass through the next area and to the drop. A Manji is on the ledge ahead. Again avoid or kill depending on your equipment. To avoid him make a run for it when he is walking left. Head far right, right up to the ledge guarded by a Red Jonin. If you do have the blades you will be able to pick up the health potion en route. The Manji, if you didn’t kill him, might go into ! mode whilst killing the Jonin, if so just crouch after his death.

Jump to the watch tower below, beyond you on the floor is another Manji. If you wish to avoid him you will have to get to the lowered footpath and crouch, from here just do you best – it is most likely you will be seen, but try and grapple to the tower. Otherwise switch blades and kill him. Pass up the steps and roll towards the Red Jonin. Pop up and kill him. Then make your way down and kill the final Martial Artist.

Tatsumaru can be a tricky customer, especially if he uses an exploding arrow. For this reason always carry or pick up a Ninja Rebirth. Try and block most moves and counter with your own combo. He is especially weak after his forward lunge. Use any items you may have picked up, such as the grenade. He has two moves which will drive you to despair. “How about This” unleashes a devastating combo and he also has a pile-driver move.

Grand Master Item
Decoy Whistle

Special Move
Wrath of Heaven

Hints

• Prepare for the final battle!
• Some Jonin have Shuriken for you.
• Use the Grappling Hook wisely.

Boss
Tenrai 1st form – Health: 150
Tenrai 2nd form – Health: 200
Tenrai 3rd form – Health: 200 (only if you mixed Izayoi with the Shichishito sword)

Walkthrough
Layout A , Difficulty: Normal
Enemies: 19
Max Score: 840/845

Use the grappling hook to reach the ledge above and drop off the other side, making sure you keep close to the wall on your right using R1. Wait a little and a martial arts expert will appear. When he turns around to turn dispose of him from behind. Go around the corner and hug the left hand side until you reach the second candle, then stop. Wait for the man around the corner to turn around and begin walking back, before killing him. Climb up the ledge in front and make sure to hide behind either of the sides parts, pay attention to the martial arts expert across the pitfall in front wait for him to start walking right, then jump over the pitfall and kill him.

Now go down the ramp into the room ahead, hug the left hand side of the corridor and when you reach the junction, you’ll see a red Jonin around the corner wait for him to turn around and then kill him. Go back to the junction and go forward a little in a small nook there will be a martial arts expert, wait for him to look in the direction that is away from you and then quickly kill him before he sees you. Turn around to see a little opening in the wall to the right side of the room, climb up. Follow the passage around a bit, then when you reach the U-turn in the corridor use R1 to look around the corner. There will be a Kunoichi just around the corner, wait for her to come close and then turn around before killing her, be quick and don’t let her walk too far or you will be spotted by the martial arts expert hidden in the little nook on the right wall. To kill him, hug the wall he is on and wait for him to look away from you then get him quickly before he sees you.

Carry on moving forward and you’ll come to a room with 3 pillars in it, climb up the smallest one then jump to the next and from here grapple to the tallest of the 3, as you climb up be sure to crouch to avoid being seen by the martial arts expert across the way, when he begins to walk to the right jump across and kill him. Carry on moving forward until you reach the room with a huge hole in the floor, jump along the little platforms and jump to the ledge adjacent to where you started from here you’ll be able to see the Jonin around the corner but he won’t see you if you crouch, wait for him to look away before attempting to kill him. Follow the walkway to the huge opening in front of you, climb the ledges all the way up until the final one which leads into a room with 2 martial arts experts in, wait for the martial expert furthest away to have gone out of sight and the closest one has begun walking right, then climb up and kill the one that’s closest, then run across the room into the next that has a set of stairs in, you could go back and kill the other martial arts expert if you wish so. Climb the stairs here and grapple into the room filled with writing above. Go up the stairs and grapple up to the doorway leading out. Make sure to crouch when leaving the room as there is a Jonin to your right, wait for him to look away then jump over to his platform and kill him.

From there jump across to the platform being held up by chains and follow it around the corner, then jump to the platform in front, then crouch and look left, there should be another Jonin, wait for him to start walking right then jump across and kill him. Follow the ledge along then jump across and down to where the item box is, from there grapple up to the tiny ledge just in front of the bars and climb over. Next climb up the ledge to your left. Now follow this corridor until it meets a drop down into a room with big lanterns in, peer over the edge and after a while a martial arts expert will appear from round the corner, wait for him to start walking out of sight before jumping down and killing him. Follow the corridor until you see an opening on the left, hug the wall and look around the corner, there will be another guy here, just wait for him to be facing the other way and then just go in and kill him. Go through the big door ahead to face the evil Tenrai.

Tenrai in his first form basically only uses 2 attacks, that can be easily avoided by using the super jump (directional button + XX). He will either throw lightning bolts at you or have deadly spikes come out of the floor. In both cases use the super jump to dodge his spells and get close to him. Once you are close to him be as offensive as you can. Tenrai might teleport away, so don’t get impatient! Stay calm and use your jumping abilities.

If you have a few spare health potions or ninja rebirths you could chance killing him in one blow with the Wrath of Heaven, the most effective way of doing this is by knocking him over and performing the move while he is lay down so that he is hit by it as he stands up, then afterwards quickly drink a health potion.
After a cut scene, you’ll face Tenrai again, this time he has a few new attacks and he inflicts more damage. He can poison you with his green gaze, so try to avoid being touched by it.
You can’t hurt Tenrai in his 2nd form. The best way is to quickly attack him and keep on attacking until another cutscene takes place.

Depending on your earlier choice in Mission 6 ‘Retrieve the steel for Ressai’ you may have to fight yet another of Tenrai’s forms, but this time the Izayoi is powered up so you inflict a lot more damage making this fight incredibly easier.
After Tenrai is defeated you’ll be treated to the games ending.

Grand Master Item
Binding Spell

Special Move
Wrath of Heaven

Hints
- Beware of the Martial Artists
- Kasumi and Shizuku are useful but not essential
- Poison Anitdotes are a wise precaution

Boss
Tenrai (1st Form) – Health: 150
Tenrai (2nd Form) – Health: 200

Walkthrough
Layout A, Difficulty: Normal
Enemies: 16
Max Score: 780

So the final confrontation with Tenrai! This level again is quite linear, except the pathway branches into two and then rejoins. The walk-through deals with the easier route which avoids the Manji, so the undead blades are not needed really on this layout.

Head forward and grapple up to your right. A Martial Artist stands guard, kill him when his back is turned. Move forward and drop down, cling the wall to you right. Do not move beyond the corner, instead observe the Martial Artist patrolling beyond. Switch to the other wall to get closer, before going for the kill. Around the next corner patrols another Martial Artist on a platform, ignore him, and instead grapple above your head on to a high platform. This is where the paths split.

On the platform opposite is a Red Box item, which can on occasions have 3 eggs. Return to the other platform and pass through the opening, continue on until you reach a ledge. Jump to grab it, and pull yourself up. Cling the left wall and gradually move forward. Beyond the corner is a Martial Artist. Kill him and continue on. At the precipice jump to platform below.

Head to the end then grapple up left. Wait until the Red Jonin appears, and when he turns climb up and stealth kill him. Head around the corner and jump to the next platform below you. Now grapple up right. Head forward and grapple again. Directly ahead a Red Jonin stands guard. When he turns away you will have to climb up and quickly jump the gap before plunging your two blades in his head. Should he drop any blades be sure to pick them up.

Head right through the doorway and up what are like giant steps. Don’t enter the next room as it is patrolled by a Blue Jonin and a Martial Artist. Be sure the Martial Artist has just come into and then out of sight before jumping out and killing the Jonin. Head further down and kill the Martial Artist. Head up the stairs (behind which is a grenade if you want it).

Grapple right into the orange room and then grapple right again on to the platform. Kill the Red Jonin patrolling the platform to your left. Grapple to the platform on the left from here and cling the wall to your right. Above you patrols Red Jonin jump up and kill him. Continue down this passageway and drop in to a lit area. Pass the corner and cling the left wall just before the doorway/opening. A Martial Artist patrols left to right here. Kill him before going through the door to meet Tenrai.

Tenrai’s first form is easy. Get in close and use your combos. Try and avoid his 3 different spells.

Tenrai’s second form is more aggressive but shouldn’t cause any problems. Try to avoid his Poison Mist. Use any Blades you picked up by running away, and then quickly pressing R2 to lock on before pressing Triangle to fire. Otherwise get in there and do your worst.

Grand Master Item
Binding Spell

Special Move
Wrath of Heaven

Hints

• Use stealth to open doors.
• The enemy placement is narrow.
• Stairs are marked by red squares on the map.

Boss
Hamada – Health: 100

Walkthrough
Layout A, Difficulty: Normal
Enemies: 21
Max Score: 875

Right when the mission starts go into a crouching position. There are 3 doors in your area, take the one right to you, but don’t be too impatient because a ninja is waiting around the corner. So proceed with cautiousness. Once you killed him follow the corridor. Watch your Ki another ninja is close. Hug the wall and look around the corner seeing a ninja patrolling the corridor ahead. You can either kill him when he walks away from you or slip through the door on the right wall. This room has a another door in the top right corner that will lead you to the 2nd floor of Gohda castle.

From here, open the door in front of you by using stealth; there will be a ninja in this room, just wait for him to turn his back then kill him. Go left and peep around the corner there will be a Kunoichi in the sleeping room ahead. Wait for her to turn her back and kill her too. Open the door in front of you but don’t go through instead hug the wall and look around the corner where another ninja guards the stairs. When he shows you his back, you know what to do . Then go up the stairs. Press against the wall to stealthily open the door at the top of the stairs. In the next room there is a ninja, wait for him to start walking to the left before attempting to kill him and don’t be fooled by his little trick he plays by pretending to walk then he stands still and carries on looking in your direction, wait until he does this then when he starts to walk left again kill him. From there open the following door by using stealth, in this room there be 2 ninjas but you can only see one, if your quick enough and you kill the one you can see straight away because his back is turned but if not wait until you can. Immediately after killing him hide behind the wall and wait for the other ninja to turn around then kill him as well.

After dealing with him go through the next door and hug the wall and look around the corner to see a ninja wait for him to turn his back to you so you can dispose of him. Hug the wall and peep around the corner wait a little and a Kunoichi should appear in the corridor beyond, wait for her to turn her back then kill her too, after this immediately hug the left wall to avoid being seen by the ninja in the next room, wait for him to turn around and then kill him. Now go down the stairs and through the room there to face Hamada.

Hamada is an easy opponent for Ayame as she is faster than him, so just dodge his attacks, especially his thrust attack, and attack him whenever possible. Your best bet is to just keep attacking him and not giving him a chance to retaliate.

Grand Master Item
Super Shuriken

Special Move
Ninja Vision

Enemies: 16
Max Score: 625
Ninja Item: Smoke Bomb

Crouch. To your left patrols a bow ninja (1). Immediately left patrols a scythe ninja (2). Head north to find a short-sword ninja (3) patrolling the wooded area. Head up left to find a bow ninja (4) patrolling the ledge with the outdoor spa. Patrolling the house in front of you is a scythe ninja (4). If you don’t want to achieve a Grand Master you can now head in to Shiunsai’s house, otherwise head around the back of the house to find another scythe ninja (6) patrolling the other side.

Jump off this ledge on to the larger of the two buildings below. Guarding the far corner is a sword ninja (7). Inside the building you will find a scattered item; the Smoke Bomb. Head east to the northern entrance of the bamboo forest area. A short-sword ninja (8) guards the entrance. Continue through the forest towards the other end to find another short-sword ninja (9).

Cautiously head out the forest and grapple up to the watch tower defended by a bow ninja (10). Next take out the claw ninja (11) who patrols below. Head south towards the lake to find a scythe ninja (12). Now move to your right to where a sword ninja (13) patrols the field by the hut. Make you way towards the movement training area.

There are 3 enemies in this area. A short-sword ninja (14) patrols nearby with a bowman (15) stood watching on a pillar. Kill the female first when she is farthest from the bowman. Then take out the bowman. Patrolling the L-shaped wall is the final enemy, a claw ninja (16). Head to Shiunsai’s house to fight your master.

Boss: Azuma Shiunsai
Health: 100
The old man is a formidable opponent, armour is recommended. Use the smoke bomb you have found to lauch into a series of attacks. Use anything else e.g. shuriken that you have picked off your dead foes. Use a health potion if needed.

Rikimaru had just defeated the Kung-Fu master on the ship in the secret harbor.He was just about to leave the secret harbor and go back to the ninja village when all of a sudden a dark figure wearing a mask that looked like a dragon appeared out of newer and did a downward strike with his fist at Rikimaru’s skull.Luckly the skill shadow warrior did a backflip just before he was hit in the face.The figure tryed to spin hook kick Rikimaru in the face but Rikimaru was to fast he ducked to the ground and sweeped the figure off his feet and onto the ground.Rikimaru thought that would slow the figure down but it had no effect the figure did a kick-up and drew out his sword.Rikimaru recognized the blade it was Izayoi and could only mean one thing.
The figure took off the mask and revealed his identity it was Tatsumaru.Rikimaru was shocked and said

“Tatsumaru your alive”

the figure responded

“Who is Tatsumaru I am Seiyru The Blue Dragon one of the four Lords of the Burning Dawn”.

And Rikimaru said

“What are you talking about you are Tatsumaru leader of the Azuma Ninja”.

The figure replied

“I have no time to talk to a mad man”

and with that the figure was off into the sky.Rikimaru was filled with anger he wanted answers and he was going to get them.Rikimaru had always been faster than Tatsumaru so it was no problem keeping with him he quickly did a double front flip and pulled out his sword at the same time and he landed right in front of the use to be Tatsumaru.Rikimaru said

“I want some answers Seiyru and I will get them even if I have to use cold steel”.

And Seiyru said

“I do not wish to fight you but if you pose a threat than I guess I must kill you”.

The once Tatsumaru drew his sword out and charged at Rikimaru was ready for him and flipped his intire body over his shoulder unfortunately Seiyru was ready for it and landed on his feet.Then he twisted his upper body and slashed Rikimaru in the gut Rikimaru screamed in pain as blood flowed from his gut.But that only mad Rikimaru even madder her threw three shurikens at Seiyru.Seiyru amazingly blocked two of them but the third went straight in to his shoulder.He dropped his sword as his whole intire arm became num as a result of too much blood loss.Then Rikimaru flying side kicked Seiyru in the gut and he fell too the ground Rikimaru held his sword up to his neck and said okay time for some answers.Then all of a sudden he sensed two foes coming in fast and one said

“I don’t think so”.

It was Lady Kagami and Sazaku they both threw down at least ten round balls instantly when the balls hit the ground a mighty gas was released.Rikimaru recognized this gas it was a mixture of cloudy smoke and tear gas.He could not escape the gas quick enough he had to breath and he did and when he did he fainted instantley.The last thing he saw was all three of the ninjas getting away before he fainted.He did not wake up someone woke him up it was Ayame she asked

“What happened”

and he responded by saying

“I will tell you everything when we get back to the village.”

Biography
Ayame was the last student chosen by Master Shiunsai. Blessed with raw talent but a bad attitude. Curious and willing to learn new techniques, she is never patient enough to fully master one. During the Warring States perioid, Shiunsai traveled to Kyoto. Kyoto lay in ruins as warring armies fought for the ownership of the village. He saw a young girl on the riverbank watching corpses float by. It was a strange sensation for Shiunsai to see a girl in the midst of all that desolation. Although he searched for the girl’s parents, he could not find them. The girl herself appeared to be in shock. She knew her name, and her age, but that was all. The thought of leaving her there to fend for herself didn’t make Shiunsai very proud, but what would he do with a young girl? He couldn’t train her to be a female ninja, that much was clear. Shiunsai was not part of a large and well-established ninja organisation like the Iga Ninja. As a lone wolf, he didn’t have the knowledge or resources to train a female ninja. What did Shiunsai know of the ways of love? What could he teach a girl about seduction or hypnotism? As he prepared to turn his back on the girl clutching at his sleeve, Shiunsai thought he detected in her the makings of a ninja. He decided to take her home after all. He raised her the only way he knew how — as a regular ninja like Tatsukichi (Tatsumaru’s child name). Judged on her natural abilities alone, Omon was probably the most talented of Shiunsai’s three pupils. Despite her late start and her tender age, Omon was initiated into the circle of ninja at almost the same time as Rikimaru, when she was only 14. As a ninja, Omon would be known as Ayame.

Ayame has developed a strong relationship with Kiku, the daughter of Lord Gohda. After the death of Kiku’s mother Lady Kei, Ayame became like an older sister to Kiku. Ayame will protect Kiku at any cost.  As a symbol of their strong relationship Ayame and Kiku always wear their sister bells close to their hearts. Ayame is in love with Tatsumaru, but unfortunately he does not feel the same for her.

Favorite Technique: Disabling an enemy by using shuriken in a surprise attack.
Favorite Weapon: Ayame prefers her two short swords over the standard ninja blade.

MP3 Quotes
Play - “Who cares? He’s just some drunken bumpkin.”
Play - “Goodbye Genbu The Wise, Lord of the Burning Dawn.”
Play - “You’re the head idiot around here, aren’t you?”
Play - “You mean Genbu the drooling idiot, one of the four idiots of Idiotland!”
Play - “I will kill Tatsumaru myself.”
Play - “I knew you had to be in charge ’cause you stink worse than the others.”

Appearance
Tenchu: Stealth Assassins
Tenchu 2: Birth of the Stealth Assassins
Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven
Tenchu: Return from Darkness
Tenchu: Kurenai

Biography

7 years have passed since Ayame lost her master Azuma Shiunsai, Clan brother and love Tatsumaru during the events of Tenchu 2: Birth of the Stealth Assassins. She has matured a lot and improved her skills. Her fighting style is a lot quicker and smoother than Rikimaru’s. She is tough, killing her enemies cold blooded without the sign of any doubt or hesitation, though she knows feelings like love, sadness and desperation. Her sarcasm is as feared as her sharp blades.

Ayame was the last student chosen by Master Shiunsai, by now dead leader of the Azuma Ninja Clan. Blessed with raw talent but a bad attitude. Curious and willing to learn new techniques , she was never patient enough to fully master one. It is told during the Warring States period, Shiunsai travelled to Kyoto, but Kyoto lay in ruins because warring armies fought for the ownership of the town. He saw a young girl on the riverbank watching corpses float by. It was a strange sensation for Shiunsai to see a young girl in the midst of all that desolation. Although he searched for the girl’s parents, he could not find them. The girl herself appeared to be in shock. She knew her name, and her age, but that was all. The thought of leaving her there to fend for herself didn’t make Shiunsai very proud, but what would he do with a young girl? He couldn’t train her to be a female ninja, that much was clear. Shiunsai was not part of a large and well-established ninja organisation like the Iga Ninja. As a lone wolf, he didn’t have the knowledge or ressources to train a kunoichi (female ninja). What did Shiunsai know of the ways of love? What could he teach a girl about seduction or hypnotism? As he prepared to turn his back on the young girl clutching at his sleeve, Shiunsai thought he detected in her the makings of a ninja. He decided to take her home after all. He raised her the only way he knew — as a regular ninja like Tatsukichi (Tatsumaru’s child name). Judged on her natural abilities alone, Omon was probably the most talented of Shiunsai’s three pupils. Despite her late start and her tender age, Omon was initiated into the circle of ninja at almost the same time as Rikimaru, when she was only 14. As a ninja, Omon would be known as Ayame. Ayame has developed a strong relationship with Kiku , the daughter of Lord Gohda . After the death of Kiku’s mother Lady Kei, Ayame became sort of an older sister for Kiku. Ayame will protect Kiku at any cost from any harm.

MP3 Quotes
Play -  “Hurry up and die!”
Play -  “Hmmm, now where did that letcherous old goat go and hide himself.”
Play -  “You’ve been a bad boy, its payback time!”
Play -  “I guess you deserve a thank you this time.”

Appearances
Tenchu: Stealth Assassins
Tenchu 2: Birth of the Stealth Assassins
Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven
Tenchu: Return from Darkness
Tenchu: Kurenai

Original author Selenia. Sounds provided by Chris B. Edited by the Tenchu Checkpoint Team for site relaunch.

Biography
At the end of Tenchu: Stealth Assassins Rikimaru presumably died while rescuing Ayame and Kiku from a collapsing cavern. Since then Ayame has been the only remaining Azuma Ninja. Lord Gohda sends her out to patrol his territory for suspicious movements. As she reaches the borders she stumbles upon Rin’s destroyed home town Hagakure. At first Rin mistakes her for being one of the attackers and the 2 fight. In the further events Ayame can convince Rin she had nothing to do with the attacks on her home town and helps Rin to find out who really was behind the attack, Jyuzou and his Kuroya gang.

More than 7 years have passed since Ayame lost her master Azuma Shiunsai, Clan brother and love Tatsumaru during the events of Tenchu 2: Birth of the Stealth Assassins. She has matured a lot and improved her skills. Her fighting style is a lot quicker and smoother than Rikimaru’s. She is tough, killing her enemies cold blooded without the sign of any doubt or hesitation, though she knows feelings like love, sadness and desperation. Her sarcasm is as feared as her sharp blades.

Ayame was the last student chosen by Master Shiunsai, by now dead leader of the Azuma Ninja Clan. Blessed with raw talent but a bad attitude. Curious and willing to learn new techniques , she was never patient enough to fully master one. It is told during the Warring States period, Shiunsai traveled to Kyoto, but Kyoto lay in ruins because warring armies fought for the ownership of the town. He saw a young girl on the riverbank watching corpses float by. It was a strange sensation for Shiunsai to see a young girl in the midst of all that desolation. Although he searched for the girl’s parents, he could not find them. The girl herself appeared to be in shock. She knew her name, and her age, but that was all. The thought of leaving her there to fend for herself didn’t make Shiunsai very proud, but what would he do with a young girl? He couldn’t train her to be a female ninja, that much was clear. Shiunsai was not part of a large and well-established ninja organization like the Iga Ninja. As a lone wolf, he didn’t have the knowledge or resources to train a kunoichi (female ninja). What did Shiunsai know of the ways of love? What could he teach a girl about seduction or hypnotism? As he prepared to turn his back on the young girl clutching at his sleeve, Shiunsai thought he detected in her the makings of a ninja. He decided to take her home after all. He raised her the only way he knew — as a regular ninja like Tatsukichi (Tatsumaru’s child name). Judged on her natural abilities alone, Omon was probably the most talented of Shiunsai’s three pupils. Despite her late start and her tender age, Omon was initiated into the circle of ninja at almost the same time as Rikimaru, when she was only 14. As a kunoichi, Omon would be known as Ayame.

Ayame has developed a strong relationship with Kiku , the daughter of Lord Gohda. After the death of Kiku’s mother Lady Kei, Ayame became sort of an older sister for Kiku. As a symbol of her relationship Ayame and Kiku always wear their sister bells close to their hearts. Ayame will protect Kiku at any cost from any harm.

Appearances
Tenchu: Stealth Assassins
Tenchu 2: Birth of the Stealth Assassins
Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven
Tenchu: Return from Darkness
Tenchu: Fatal Shadows

written by Reimaru, Shiki and Selenia

Basic Attacks

Combos

Specials

Unlock

A break down of the scoring system and ranking for Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven when playing with Ayame or Rikimaru is given below. Tesshu’s Ranking System can be found here.

Task		Breakdown	Points
Undetected Kills		Undetected kills	+ 20	(for each)
Detected kills		Detected kills	+  5	(for each)
Spotted		Finishing mission	+300
		Spotted	- 30	(for each)
		Not spotted bonus	+150
Innocents		Innocent kills	- 50	(for each)
Points		Rank	Items
	x  < 100		3 random ninja items increased
100 <	x  < 250		5 random ninja items increased
250 <	x  < 350		8 random ninja items increased
350 <	x  < 450		all ninja items & 4 random special items increased
	x  > 450		all ninja & special items increased

The fact that you only need 450pts to gain a Grand Master ranking allows you to deduce two formulae regarding how many times you can be spotted and still gain the highest rank. Suppose a mission has x  enemies. Then use these formulae to check how many times you can be spotted, s :

where Formula 1 calculates s  assuming you normally kill any enemy who sees you, and Formula 2 assuming you stealth kill any enemy who spots you. Note these formulae assume you kill every enemy on the level.

Cling to Ceiling
Equip your Grappling Hook and aim it at a ceiling by pressing triangle. Hold R1 and release triangle, but don’t let go of R1. Your character will be pulled against the ceiling and hang there as long as you don’t release R1, but not longer than 18 seconds. After 15 seconds your controller will start vibrating, this indicates you have 3 more seconds until you will fall down. While you are clinging to a ceiling you can still use the following items : Decoy Whistle, Grenade, Poisoned Rice and Smoke Bomb. For example try dropping a Poison Rice, when an enemy approaches to pick it up drop down on him/her and press square to kill him/her.
Unlock: Go to the Red House of Zennosuke

Feign Death
Turn the left analogue stick 360 degrees (one full circle) and press R1. Rikimaru and Ayame will hurt themselves with their weapon and drop to the floor loosing 15 health points at once and 1 more health point every second. Your health won’t drop beyond 1 though! Nearby enemies will come to investigate. When they are standing close to your head press square. Your character will jump up in a 360 degree turn and kill the enemy. If the enemy is not standing in the right postion you will miss him/her. You can practise this move best in Multiplayer Versus to find out where the enemy has to stand in order to perform a sucessful surprise attack. It is always good to stand with your back to the enemy you want to lure and then use the “Feign Death”. This way your head will be closest to the enemy which will make it more likely he/she will run towards you and stop next to your head.
Unlock: Escape from Amagai Castle

Grappling Hook Combo
This is probably the most difficult to perform ability. Best practise it in Multiplayer Versus Mode first. In order to have it work you need a good timing. It is easiest to do when you position yourself face to face with your opponent (press R2 to adjust the camera if necessary). Turn the left analogue stick 360 degrees (try to make a perfect circle) and press square, quickly followed by triangle. If you press triangle too late the grappling hook will shoot out, but won’t cling to your opponent and pull him/her back, because he/she is already laying on the floor. Don’t be frustrated if it is not working at once, it takes some time to get a feeling for this move.
Unlock: Retrieve the Yoto Swords

Ninja Mind Control
This move only works when fighting at least 2 enemies simultaneously. You can’t use it on bosses, only on common enemies.
Hold R2, then quickly push the left analogue stick forwards then backwards followed by square. Don’t release R2 during that button combination! If you did it right Rikimaru’s left arm will shoot forward and his fingers will touch the enemy. Nearly the same with Ayame, she just uses her right arm. The touched enemy will now temporarily fight on your side (approximately 5-10 seconds) and attack his friends. You can’t control this enemy, he/she will fight on him/herself until the “Ninja Mind Control” wears off. Don’t attack him/her during that time.
First practise the move without any enemies in sight. Once you are used to the button combination try it out in the early missions. I recommend for Rikimaru “Punish the Evil Merchant” and for Ayame “Execute the Evil Merchant”. The 3 guards partying in the house and guarding the key are weak and slow, and therefore your perfect training. Alert them, then run away so they follow you. Turn around and try the “Ninja Mind Control”. You will see it is pretty easy. Remember you can still block, even if you have R2 pressed. You can throw a smoke bomb to confuse them while you try the move.
Unlock: Rescue Counsel Sekiya

Ninja Vision
Hold L1 and push the right analogue stick forward to zoom into your surroundings. Hold L1 and push the right analogue stick downwards to zoom out. Can be combined with using the left analogue stick to freely look around. Ninja Vision allows you to aim items more precisely and throw items farther, by zooming into your target.
Unlock: Assassinate the Traitor Hamada

Ninjutsu Block
Press circle when an enemy tries to attack you. Ayame and Rikimaru will do a 360 degree turn and the yellow kuji-circle will appear on the screen. You can push the enemy off balance with the Ninjutsu Block and leave him open for a counter attack of yours. Best practise this move in the early stages, where the guards are weaker and slower than in the later missions. If you fail to block right in time, your enemies’ attack will go through unblocked.
Unlock: Execute the Evil Merchant

Somersault Kick
Push the left analogue stick forward and press square 4 times then push the left analogue stick backwards and press square.
A very useful move. Ayame will at first do her normal attack combo then finish it with a backwards jump and kick her opponent (Somersault Kick). The opponent is pushed of his/her feet.
Unlock: Rescue the Village Girls

Wall Kick
Jump against a wall (press X and a direction) and press square when you hit the wall. Your character will push him/herself off the wall. If you come to close to an enemy after you pushed yourself off the wall and he/she is not aware of your presence (“?”-mode) he/she will be killed. Is the enemy aware of your presence your attack will be blocked.
Practise it at a wall with no enemies around first. If you have problems timing it, so you can kill an enemy with it use the Chameleon Spell before you use the “Wall Kick”. Even if you miss the enemy, you still have a 2nd and 3rd chance. Of course it is easiest to perform the “Wall Kick” on non-moving characters.
If 2 walls are standing close enough together, you can do the “Wall Kick” multiple times and push off from one wall to the other and so on.
Unlock: Retrieve the Jewel of Heaven

Wrath of Heaven
The most powerful special move of all. Simply press X + circle at the same time. Ayame will shoot forward and deal huge damage to the opponent. Every time you do this move your health will be drained down to 1. If you miss your target and are attacked or are attacked before finishing the move you are dead. At the beginning of the move Ayame casts the Kuji-Kiri. You will see the yellow Kuji-cricle appear on the screen. Once this has been done Ayame will shoot straight forward with her weapons. During the casting time of the Kuji-Kiri you are vulnerable to attacks, so it is always a good strategy to combine this move with items that slow or confuse your opponents, such as Smoke Bomb, Tiger Trap or Binding Spell for example.
Ayame can kill multiple enemies with her “Wrath of Heaven” move at once. You can best try that out in Ayame’s mission “Execute the Evil Merchant”. Go to the house with the 3 partying guards and throw a Smoke Bomb. When the guards are confused by the smoke do the “Wrath of Heaven” -move.
This move is useful in all fights. Unfortunately Ayame can’t kill every boss instantly with it. Bosses like Tenrai who have a lot of health for example can’t be killed with it.
Unlock: Assassinate the Evil Tenrai A or B

Wall Run
When jumping toward a wall, keep the x button held down to run up the wall. Release the x button to perform a wall jump.
With this technique, ninjas can jump toward a wall, then continue to run up the wall. It requires great leg, stomach, and even back muscles to keep balance and perfect this technique.
Scrolls required: 10

Crescent Moon
Press square, square, square, square, back + square
At the end of a flurry of attacks, Ayame can unleash a devastating kick attack, low to the ground.
Scrolls required: 30

Hawk Eye (Ninja Vision)
Hold L1 and push the right analogue stick forward to zoom into your surroundings. Hold L1 and push the right analogue stick downwards to zoom out. Can be combined with using the left analogue stick to freely look around. Hawk Eye allows you to aim items more precisely and throw them farther, by zooming into your target. Legend says that the ninja had eyes as acute as a hawk’s. Whether this was due to training or use of tools is not known, but perhaps it was a special skill like this that gave them this power.
Scrolls required: 60

Swift Guard (Ninjutsu Block)
Press circle just before an enemy attacks you, to parry attacks.
You can push the enemy off balance with this technique and leave him open for a counter attack of yours. If you fail to block right in time, your enemies’ attack will go through unblocked. Ayame has perfected this technique so that it requires very little physical strength to turn away even the strongest attacks.
Scrolls required: 100

Cheetah Sprint
Press R1 + L3 (push left analoge stick). Press circle to cancel the move.
Crouching low to the ground like a cheetah, a ninja can launch into a great sprint. This technique is especially useful in areas with many places to hide, and many corners to turn. This technique is practiced by sprinting with weights attached to one’s leg.
Scrolls required: 150

Inner Ear
Press R1 + circle. A map pops up showing the location of enemies within a certain region. Only enemies that make noises are shown. Watch the map for a while to identify enemy locations. By sitting close to the ground and putting herself under a sort of hypnosis, a ninja can hear even the slightest of noise by picking up vibrations from the ground. It requires great control over one’s heartbeat and breathing to do this technique.
Scrolls required: 200

Arrow Block
Press circle just before an enemy projectile hits you. Deflect any incoming enemy projectiles. It is thought that ninjas possibly possessed this skill, but it seems unlikely, as it would have been more effective to dodge arrows, and continue, rather than stop and block.
Scrolls required: 250

Long Claw (Grappling Hook Combo)
This technique will require some time to learn, so be patient. Rotate the left analog stick 360 degrees (try to make a perfect circle) and press square. After the enemy is launched into the air, press triangle to grab the enemy with the hook.If you press triangle too late the grappling hook will shoot out, but won’t cling to your opponent and pull him/her back, because he/she is already laying on the floor. Using the grappling hook, this technique allows you to attack enemies after they have been knocked back.
Scrolls required: 300

Sniper
Select a shuriken from your items and press triangle to throw it. If you aim correctly and hit the enemy’s head from behind, it will cause instant death.
In addition to the Hawk Eye technique, a ninja can further train her eye so that she can strike at enemy pressure points and vital organs with a shuriken, even at a great distance.
Scrolls required: 350

Mind Control
Paralyze enemies and innocents by pressing circle when you are in stealth kill range. This will only work on guards in ?-mode. By applying pressure on a specific pressure point, a ninja can temporarily shut down an enemy’s nervous system, effectively paralyzing them for a short while. The victim will not be able to see or hear for the durations of the paralysis. This ninja technique allows the ninja to use hypnosis to control the mind of her target.
Scrolls required: 400

Spider’s Nest (formerly known as Cling to Ceiling)
Equip your Grappling Hook and aim it at a ceiling by pressing triangle. Hold R1 and release triangle, but don’t let go of R1. Your character will be pulled against the ceiling and hang there as long as you don’t release R1, but not longer than 18 seconds. After 15 seconds your controller will start vibrating, this indicates you have 3 more seconds until you will fall down. While you are clinging to a ceiling you can still use the following items: Decoy Whistle, Grenade, Poisoned Rice and Smoke Bomb. For example try dropping a Poison Rice, when an enemy approaches to pick it up drop down on him/her and press square to kill him/her.
Scrolls required: 450

False Wall (Wall Camouflage)
Press to a wall by holding R1 and press circle. If you release either button the move ends.A great deal of a ninja’s power comes from the manipulation of people’s senses. The False Wall technique allows a ninja to blend into surrounding walls, using sheets of cloth painted in patterns to match those walls.
Scrolls required: 500

WrathPress and hold the square to charge, then release the button to attack. If the attack is successful, press square again to attack the next target. When surrounded by enemies, Ayame can spend a moment focusing her inner energies, then lash out in a great attack, striking all those nearby. In this game, Ayame has yet to perfect this technique. This is the predecessor of Ayame’s Wrath of Heaven move in Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven(PS2)/Tenchu: Return from Darkness(XBOX).
Scrolls required: 550

Written by gongcai372001 and Selenia.

1. Traditional throat slit.
Approach an enemy from behind.

2. Neck-breaker.
Face back to back with an enemy.

3. Lungin stab to the chest.
Approach enemy from the front.

Check Out Swiftshark’s Stealth Kill FAQ

Biography
Shiunsai adopted Rikimaru, Ayame and Tatsumaru as infants and raised them to be Azuma Ninja. He is both their teacher and their father figure. Althoguh he has slowed down some in his old age, Shiunsai is still a very deadly swordsman. He has recently decided to step down as head of the Azuma Ninja. Knowing instinctively that his time in this world will soon end, Shiunsai wants to pass his last and most important secret on to one of his students. The problem is that his students have lived their entire lives in the small village in the mountain where Shiunsai trained them. Afraid that they are both naïve and overconfident, Shiunsai orders his students to undertake a journey that will test their mental and physical powers. Having sent his students out into a world torn apart by civil war, Shiunsai feels as if he has just thrust his students off a steep cliff in the vain expectation that they will learn to fly before they hit the bottom. Even though he knows that his decision was the correct one, he can’t help worrying about them and watching and guiding them out of the shadows!

Quotes
Play - ”May honor guide your hand.”
Play - ”You have failed apprentice, you must try again.”