Shinobi History

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So we've got a period in history where Japan is fractured and falling apart socially. Shoguns and daimyos all have their personal assassins, trained in esoteric but mortal methods of discreet warfare. This fragmentation has also broken the power of the Shinto pantheon, as worshippers start to drift more and more apart and the gods bicker over increasingly weaker domains. The Dutch show up and the introduction of trade and other religious beliefs starts to weaken the Shinto pantheon even more. The Shinto pantheon joins together to start the first school for training Shinobi, with priests acting as sensei and spiritual leaders alike. It's super idiosyncratic because every god has their own school of magic, combat, and tactics. But they more or less cooperate with all schools under one roof for the first time. Students of the Shinobi College start developing magical talents as well as refining esoteric physical ninja skills. As they master increasingly difficult and arcane methods and secret instructions, their magical talents continue to advance. The champion of each individual school becomes the Emissary for their god, a true Shinobi and empowered with unique and divine power from their patron. From those schools, the most worthy Shinobi is selected to represent the entire pantheon's interests. It's a lifetime appointment-- keyword 'lifetime'. These are the 'True Shinobi', literally divine emissaries. The first school is in Koga. A second one is opened up in Igo not long after, as several of the female deities break away to form a college for training the women (the Kunoichi). Much sexy tension exists between the two schools, much to the chagrin of the gods on both sides. Some Time Later, an ambitious young Shinobi candidate is passed over for appointment to the Senior Shinobi position. Humiliated and angry, he steals much forbidden knowledge and forsakes his oaths of silence. He finds the darkest shadows in Japan and makes profane sacrifices to whomever will heed him. He's contacted by an ancient and malevolent entity call The Beast, one of the First Gods who has been dormant for aeons. In exchange for giving the Beast all the secret knowledge of the Shinobi, he is empowered by the Beast with dark and terrible magics. He becomes the Dark Shinobi, and starts a secret guild of magically-trained assassins which is eventually called The Hand. Over time, shoguns and daimyos copy the Shinobi method and start their own schools and secret monasteries. Some of these schools even unlock their own esoteries, though few of them come close to the power of a true Shinobi. These secular assassins are called Ninja.