The Ninja is set in the year 1630, in early Edo era Japan. You play as Kazamaru, a ninja from the Ohkami province in the western region. When the feudal lord died, his evil vassal Gyokuro seized power and oppressed the people. After Gyokuro imprisoned the princess in his dungeon, you challenged his army of ninjas to a fight to free both the princess and the land. You must make your way through the land full of Gyokuro's ninja minions and infiltrate his castle. Starting out with nothing but simple throwing knives, you must learn ninjutsu techniques from scrolls during your travels to increase your power and eventually bring peace back to Ohkami.
Controls
| Control | Action |
|---|---|
|
Movement |
|
Directional shot (shoots in the direction you are facing) |
|
Upwards shot (always shoot upward regardless of your direction) |
| +
|
Turn to smoke |
Scrolls
Different scrolls are located throughout the game and they each serve a different function. The power-ups you attain for finding scrolls stay with you until you die, so you don't have to continue finding them in successive levels if you don't get hit.
Five green scrolls are hidden throughout the game, and must be found in order to make it into the secret entrance in the final level. If you don't have all five scrolls, you will start over again at the first level after scaling the castle wall. The green scrolls can be found in levels 1, 4, 6, 8 and 9.
Red scrolls upgrade your weapon and change the music in the game. When you get a red scroll, your normal shuriken will turn into a ninja throwing star, which goes through enemies and has a faster rate of fire.
Blue scrolls upgrade your running speed, which become important later on as enemies become faster and faster.