[[NinjaGaiden http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tinkninja5wa0.jpg]]

The shadow warriors of medieval Japan, reputedly possessed of all manner of mysterious powers including invisibility and intangibility. Able to infiltrate even the most heavily guarded fortress without being detected. Traditionally dressed in black bodysuits with black masks or veils to hide their faces. They are the ultimate spies and assassins, gifted with their own deadly magic and martial arts. Born in [[HiddenElfVillage hidden villages]], they are trained from birth to obey an alternative code of honor to ''bushido'' -- to [[TheStoic show no pain, feel no emotion]], and remain loyal to their clans under pain of death, or the third code of getting as much money as possible.

Or so popular legend has it. While ninja may have existed -- and may still exist -- their reputation for invisibility and infiltration more likely stemmed from their willingness to dress as members of a lower social class when no one else in Japan would consider doing such a thing. Their "invisibility" was part ''[[http://www.bmoviecomic.com/index.php?cid=53 psychological]]'' in cause -- by dressing as a peasant, they were ignored and dismissed, or [[BeneathNotice never even noticed at all]], by the {{samurai}} and other upper classes, a useful thing despite the oft fierce travel restrictions on the lower classes. Superior knowledge of survival skills, a lot of actual stealth, poisons, assassination techniques and [[TryingToCatchMeFightingDirty unorthodox tactics]] (added to the fact that the ninja actively encouraged the spread of rumors of their magical abilities) were the most important though. A common misdirection tactic, for example, would be to put one's clothing on a branch or a log while sneaking away. (or plan a sneak attack) Somewhere in history, some dumbass must have attacked the tree, and upon discovering the log dressed in the ninja's clothing; came to the natural conclusion that [[NinjaLog clearly the ninja had magically swapped places with the log]]. [[FacePalm (Oy.)]]
Ninja were also quite skilled with a variety of tools, such as the multipurpose ''kunai'' knife. Among many other things, a good ninja [[HitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy always knew where his]] ''[[HitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy sanjaku tenugui]]'' [[HitchHikersGuideToTheGalaxy was]].

-->''...The Ninja were basically rural types who had to think outside the ''bushido'' box, and therefore got a reputation for [[TheCombatPragmatist deception and trickery]]; the legends of mystical powers came later. It's like assigning magical powers to '''TheBeverlyHillbillies'''[[hottip:*:Though now that I think of it, that's not too far off the mark - Ellie Mae could commune with animals, Jethro was nigh indestructible, Granny could move with rapid speed and Jed was some sort of Zen master. I bet if you started some crap with Jed in a bar, you would suddenly find yourself on the floor bleeding all the while swearing that the poorly-dressed patriarch never moved. I bet Darth Vader would've thought twice about picking a fight with Jed Clampett. I'm digressing already. That's a bad sign.]] and then having them topple governments and hire out to the highest bidding supervillain. Okay, my version of '''The Beverly Hillbillies''' [[TheMovie movie]] probably would have sucked, too, but it wouldn't have been ''[[NinjaPirateZombieRobot dull]].
-->-- '''Dr. Freex''' of the [[http://www.stomptokyo.com/badmoviereport Bad Movie Report]], in the intro to his review of the BMovie ''[[http://www.stomptokyo.com/badmoviereport/reviews/N/ninja-phantom-heroes.html Ninja Phantom Heroes]]''

The classic ninja costume is, in fact, the outfit worn by stagehands in traditional Japanese theatre. Japanese stagehands are frequently in full view on the stage, but are ignored and considered "invisible" by the audience. It became the practice to hide ninja characters in full sight by putting them in the same outfits as the stagehands, [[PaintingTheFourthWall for a startling effect when characters were suddenly attacked by "thin air"]].

The {{OVA}} version of ''SakuraTaisen'' slyly acknowledges this origin, by the way. The stage crew of the Imperial Theatre -- the secret headquarters of the Flower Division -- are all ninja, and ninja with all manner of "ninja magic" at that.

In American movies, especially the ones from the '80s with "ninja" in the titles, only the hero ninja and the BigBad ninja make any pretense of stealth or invisibility -- and sometimes, [[TechnicolorNinjas not even them]]. Any underling ninja will be the class of {{mooks}} known as HighlyVisibleNinja.

One of the earliest Japanese cultural tropes to make it to the West, where it has now branched out into the McNinja franchise. Look for ninja to make use of the SmokeOut, the FlashStep and the aforementioned NinjaLog.

In the late 20th Century, they [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_versus_Ninjas became]] the arch-enemies of [[{{Pirate}} Pirates]], for no reason other than the RuleOfCool.

{{Sub Trope}}s include:
* ConservationOfNinjutsu
* HighlyVisibleNinja
* InstantAwesomeJustAddNinja
* McNinja
* NinjaLog
* NinjaMaid
* NinjaRun
* TechnicolorNinjas

See also NinjaTropes for a complete list of ninja-related tropes.

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!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* Almost everybody in ''{{Naruto}}''. [[HighlyVisibleNinja Not remotely stealthy about it]], either, though they ''are'' pretty tricky with things like duplication, illusions, and replacing yourself with '''''[[NarutoTheAbridgedSeries A LOG]]'''''.
** As is the {{Animesque}} counterpart ''ShurikenSchool''.
* Recca and several others in ''FlameOfRecca''.
* The stage crew of the Imperial Theatre in ''SakuraTaisen'', as noted above.
* The CanonForeigner Sasuke Sarugakure in ''[[RanmaOneHalf Ranma 1/2]]'' subverts the character type by being borderline incompetent (he's clumsy and has virtually no combat capabilities, but is a master of stealth and can move too fast to be seen) in a neighborhood filled with world-class non-ninja martial artists. In the manga, WholesomeCrossdresser Konatsu plays it a little more straight.
* Similarly, the ninja in ''NininGaShinobuden'' are incompetent ninja who usually don't even carry shuriken; when they all suddenly produce shuriken and every one hits its target, causing another character to think that maybe they are skilled after all, one calls his mother on a cell phone to tell her that he has touched a shuriken for the first time.
* Takamura Suoh from ''ClampSchoolDetectives''.
* Yamazaki Susumu is one of the two ninja who appear in ''PeacemakerKurogane''.
* Almost assuredly parodied in ''GGundam''. Midway through the story a [[McNinja German ninja]] is introduced and takes on the role of surrogate mentor to the protagonist, Domon. He even practices German Ninjutsu. Hilariously enough, he shuns the traditional garb of a ninja and dresses in clothes that are not remotely useful in maintaining stealth. Most absurd is the mask he wears. While it does obscure his features, it is painted in the bright, primary colors of the German flag and sports a jester hat-like protrusion.
** [[RuleOfCool That doubles as a shuriken.]]
* ''Himawari!'' and its sequel series are all about the ninja. Most of the ninja in the series actually are fairly stealthy. The heroine herself...not so much.
* Volfogg from ''{{GaoGaiGar}}'' is a TransformingMecha Ninja.
* Akira from ''{{Mai-HiME}}'' and ''{{Mai-Otome}}'' uses a lot of classic ninja tricks and tools, including shuriken, kunai and smoke bombs. She also uses the title "Secret Ninja", while fighting in disguise (which [[PaperThinDisguise doesn't fool anybody]]). Curiously, sometimes she's seen interacting with other shadowy kuroko-wearers, implying that she indeed is a genuine ninja from a genuine ninja clan, even though that never becomes a major plot-point.
* Yoruichi and Soifon from ''{{Bleach}}'', as well as the entire Stealth Force.
* ''MahouSenseiNegima'' has Kaede. While she doesn't necessarily [[HighlyVisibleNinja stick out like a sore thumb]], she isn't very concerned with stealth either. Wields a [[{{BFS}} big friggin' shuriken]] that from tip-to-tip is taller than she is. And [[HugeSchoolgirl that's saying something]].
* ''Ryuusei no Rockman'' (AKA MegaManStarForce) has an entire episode devoted to Ninja. HighlyVisibleNinja with all the typical tricks. Though, the guy teaching the main cast the tricks of the trade is damn good at it. They add [[VerbalTic -de osaru]] on the end of every one of their sentences... And apparently, the art of ninjitsu was developed by people from the ancient civilisation of Mu. One of the Ooparts is a Shuriken, and MegaMan can take on the form of a ninja... Of wood.
* The manga ''Hanzo no Mon'' (titled ''Path of the Assassin'' in the Dark Horse translation) subverts the stereotypes regarding ninja attire; although Hanzo (and his [[spoiler:wife]]) are ninja (usually called ''suppa''), they wear light armor on the battlefield and the stereotypical ninja outfits when they need not to be seen at all, but otherwise wear context-appropriate clothing and act accordingly. Likewise, certain ninja have notoriety and may even appear openly when a lord holds court. In fact, Hanzo, his wife and Hanzo's ninja relatives have their wedding ceremony in normal noble/samurai clothing! (After she demonstrates her abilities as a ninja wearing "the" outfit.)
* Kirino and her village from {{Ai Kora}}. Kirino herself doesn't exactly /hide/ the fact she's a ninja, but she doesn't announce it to the world, either. She's another subversion of the ninja attire stereotypes, in that she wears ninja clothes in her village, and context-appropriate clothes everywhere else.
* The two main families of the anime ''{{Basilisk}}'' are all very competent ninja with unique skills that range from cool to plain freaky. Its story is often summarized as "Romeo and Juliet, with ninjas".
* ''{{Change 123}}'', in its later volumes, introduces an all-female ninja clan whose members infiltrate into Motoko's school to recruit Motoko (or, rather, to recruit her [[MultiplePersonalities alternate badass personalities]]). Unlike typical {{Highly Visible Ninja}}s, they actually blend into the normal world, wear plain clothes (even when they're in their ninja village), and use weapons which are disguised as normal everyday objects.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* It has been a common character type in American comics since the 1980s; for instance, the MarvelUniverse villain clan, The Hand, cropped up then, and during that period, FrankMiller effectively changed {{Daredevil}} into one. Many, however, have noted that creators of Comicbook/{{Batman}} created him as a de facto ninja character without knowing it in the 1930s.
* Snake-Eyes and Storm Shadow (among many others, some of whom [[DorkAge we do not speak about]]) from ''[[GIJoe G.I. Joe]]''.
* Toyota, the female mercenary ninja in ''YTheLastMan''. Although first seen using modern night-vision goggles, she enjoys a chance to spar with an opponent using traditional bladed weapons.
* Kingpin sics a bunch of ninja on the ''{{Runaways}}''.
-->'''Molly:''' Does being a ninja count as having powers?\\
'''Victor:''' It counts double!
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film]]
* The popularity of ninja in Western media may have started with the JamesBond film ''YouOnlyLiveTwice'' from 1967. Most of those ninja were depicted as being more like members of an elite government special forces unit than invisible assassins, however. (Except for the one who killed the Bond girl, of course.)
** In ''LicenceToKill'' it is revealed that Hong Kong Narcotics employs ninjas as special agents. (Given that the Special Duties Unit of the Hong Kong Police Force used to be trained by the SAS before the colony was handed back to China, this may not be as far fetched as it first seems.)
* Michael Beck as "Ken Sakura", an orphaned American adopted into a ninja clan, in the 1983 TV movie ''{{The Last Ninja}}''.
* Appear in ''{{The Last Samurai}}'', with some of their methodology were accurately presented.
* ''[[NinjaPirateZombieRobot Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]''?
* Three little ninjas!
* ''Surf Ninjas''!
* ''Lady Ninja: Reflections in Darkness''!
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* Ninjas in ''{{Cloud of Sparrows}}'' are rather more plausible than most other examples. They are very stealthy and good at dodging pursuit, but dress in normal clothes and are primarily employed as stealthy assassins and spies. Kudo, one of the two main ninjas in the book, also indulges in a spot of ClarkKenting. He is also revealed to have poorer reflexes than [[TheGunslinger gunslinger]] Matthew Stark.
* The antagonists in ''The Gone Away World'' by Nick Harkaway are a ninja clan turned corporate empire.
* Eric Van Lustbader wrote a whole series of SoBadItsGood novels about ninja....OrSoIHeard.
* ''PhoenixForce'' battled the Tigers of Justice, a radical Japanese group using ninja techniques to attack nuclear power plants to avenge Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In later books they receive the help of John Trent, a Japanese-American master of ninjitsu.
* The pulp magazine version of TheShadow was essentially a ninja...with guns and the coolness factor turned up to Eleven.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* Several {{sentai}} series have them, such as the "Ninjetti" arc of ''MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' and ''PowerRangersNinjaStorm''.
* Lee Van Cleef played fugitive ninja master John Peter Mac Allister on the short-lived TV series ''TheMaster''.
** Shown as the film in two episodes of MST3K.
* Ninjas using both 'traditional' weapons and explosives attack John Blackthorne and Mariko in the 1980 miniseries ''{{Shogun}}''.
* Charlie from ''SpinCity'' once daydreamed of winning the World Series, and fighting ninjas.
* The SpikeTV show ''DeadliestWarrior'' had a Ninja go one-on-one with a Spartan. [[spoiler:In the end, the ninja was defeated. No surprise really, given that the Ninja was up against a SPARTAN.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:New Media]]
* In ''{{lonelygirl15}}'', Bree describes Tachyon as a ninja in "Training Hard". Ninja are also parodied in "My School Project" and the remix version, "Ninja Video by [=ElizKM86=]", during which Danielbeast makes a movie about ninja.
* Charlie depicts [[HerCodeNameWasMarySue herself]] as a ninja in the animated segments of ''{{KateModern}}''.
* ''[[http://www.askaninja.com/ Ask A Ninja]]'' is a website where viewers e-mail a guy questions and he answers them as a ninja would.
* ''TheOnion'' did a piece about a [[http://www.theonion.com/content/video/ninja_parade_slips_through_town ninja parade]]. No ninja were actually spotted, although they were kind enough to leave candy in children's pockets when they weren't looking.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* The skaven of clan eshin in ''WarhammerFantasy'' are essentially ratman-ninjas.
* All 'proper' ninja (not counting changelings et al.) in [[MagicTheGathering Magic]] so far come from the ''Betrayers of Kamigawa'' expansion set. They all have the ability (known, of course, as ''ninjutsu'') to pop into play by replacing an attacking unblocked creature on their side plus a variety of followup abilities that trigger off of their dealing combat damage to a player.
* In ''{{Exalted}}'', each type of Exalt has at least one caste that focuses on stealth, deception, and similar acts of larceny. Sidereals fit the ninja archetype best, though, what with their being snapped up and subjected to intensive training within days of Exaltation, their undisputed mastery of martial arts, their residence in a hidden community that most in Creation can't even find, much less enter, and that whole business with the Arcane Fate that makes them all but impossible to track or keep records on (or even, for that matter, remember clearly). The term 'fate-ninja' really sums them up very nicely.
* ''FengShui'' lists the Ninja as a PC archetype. Their Martial Arts skill and Fu attributes are just one point lower than the Martial Artist, and they have the second highest Intrusion skill in the game (the Thief has the highest with a 16 AV). In addition, one of the Fu paths of the game, the Path of the Shadow's Companion, is tailor-made for the Ninja, with powers that allow you to make silent martial arts attacks and bypass the Toughness of your opponent when attacking someone unawares. You also get to fight ninjas a lot as both mooks and named characters.
* The Scorpion Clan, especially the Shosuro Assassins and Bayushi Ninja Infiltrators in ''LegendOfTheFiveRings''. Plays the trope straight and subverts it at the same time: the real assassins rely on disguise to blend in the crowd, while the "typical" ninjas in black pajamas are HighlyVisibleNinja {{Mook}}s used often as a distraction.
** They're not "real" ninjas, though. The real ninjas in Rokugan are shapeshifting servants of a CosmicHorror that's also an identity-stealing version of TheVirus.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:VideoGames]]
* Oboromaru in ''LiveALive''.
* One of the more interesting portrayals in recent memory comes from a level of the video game ''EliteBeatAgents''. It starts as a subversion: Ken Ozu, lazy heir to a car company, is forced into a ninja outfit by his father and forced to retrieve stolen automobile plans from a rival company, despite having little to no talent. After this, however, the player's success (or lack of) determines what happens. If the player fares poorly, it remains a subversion, as Ken fails miserably whenever called upon to use his "ninja powers". If the player does well, however, it becomes a DoubleSubversion, as Ken runs smoothly through the "classic" ninja abilities and completes his mission.
* ''TheKingOfFighters''' Mai Shiranui. [[HighlyVisibleNinja Highly visible]]...[[MsFanservice yes]], [[{{Stripperiffic}} she is]].
** Which means that Mai's native game series, ''FatalFury'', goes here as well. In ''Garou: Mark of the Wolves'', Hokutomaru takes her place as the game's ninja.
** And let's not forget Andy Bogard, who is Mai's Love Interest in both ''Fatal Fury'' and ''The King of Fighters''
** And let's not forget Eiji Kisaragi, imported from ''ArtOfFighting'' 2; and Jazu, a guest from ''KizunaEncounter''.
*** Eiji's ninja nature starting to be played for laughs, such as the inability to sneak up on a housewife (true, The Hero's mother... but still) and also refusing to chance his outfit when spying on his archenemies in a fancy restaurant.
** Spinoff ''Maximum Impact 2'' introduced Nagase, another HighlyVisibleNinja described in-game as "The Ninja Computer Geek".
* ''SamuraiShodown'' had a number of them, the most typical one being Hattori Hanzo.
** Hanzo also appears as a Ninja in the ''SamuraiWarriors'' games (though in real life, he was actually a {{Samurai}}). In the first game he was contrasted with Sanada Yukimura in a "ninja vs. samurai" way, but in the second game he's contrasted with Fuuma Kotarou, another ninja, in a similar way to their ''World Heroes'' counterparts. The other ninja is Kunoichi ("female ninja"), an original character based on the Sanada Ten who supposedly did Yukimura's dirty work for him (subverting his own archetype).
** ''SamuraiWarriors 2'' adds Fuuma Kotarou and Nene, although the latter is a samurai's wife whose "ninja-ness" is in being a gameplay replacement for the removed Kunoichi. (This would be acknowledged by Hanzo, who if they meet in one stage would comment on her having gotten stranger, "since the last time we met.")
*** In one ''WarriorsOrochi'' gaiden mission, Kunoichi and Nene face each other on the battlefield, and Kunoichi [[LampshadeHanging points this out]]: "Well, if it isn't my SpiritualSuccessor!" (Those are even her exact words.)
** Hanzo Hattori was an actual legendary figure in Japanese history, rumored to have been a ninja as well as a pretty decent soldier.
*** Then there are Sogetsu & Kazuki Kazama, and their magical.
* Altair from ''AssassinsCreed'' fits the MO of a historical ninja in that he is an assassin who escaped notice by blending in with a crowd, but lives in crusade-era Israel rather than feudal Japan.
** the new game with have more or less the same, only he can swim, is Italian and FABULOUS!!
* Ryu Hayabusa from the ''NinjaGaiden'' and ''DeadOrAlive'' franchises. The latter series has a few others, including Kasumi, Hayate, and [[spoiler:their half-sister]] Ayane.
* Strider Hiryu, from his eponymous game series.
* Crypto questions why there are Ninja in Japan in 1969 in ''DestroyAllHumans 2''. Everyone he asks tell him to go with it, and that "everyone loves ninjas".
* The titular character from ''Izuna: The Legend of the Unemployed Ninja'' and its sequel.
* Edge in ''FinalFantasyIV''
* Shadow from ''FinalFantasyVI''
* Yuffie in ''FinalFantasyVII'', of course.
** And her gameplay clone in {{Ehrgeiz}}, Sasuke.
* Kage-Maru from ''VirtuaFighter''
* The {{Commodore 64}} game ''{{The Last Ninja}}'' and its sequel make this {{Older Than The NES}}.
* The village of Mizuho in ''TalesOfSymphonia'' and [[spoiler:its successor]] the village of Japoni from ''Tales of Phantasia'' are hidden ninja villages. [[AbsoluteCleavage Sheena]], one of your party members, is from the former, and in the remake of ''Phantasia'', you can get Suzu in your party from the latter.
* The ''{{Shinobi}}'' series features a ninja hero, who battles [[ConservationOfNinjutsu scores of enemy ninja]] in a variety of different situations, including while being on a [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome ninja surfboard]] in the third game.
* In no particular order from ''MortalKombat'': Sub-Zero, Scorpion, Reptile, Noob Saibot, Kitana, Mileena, Jade, Chameleon, Khameleon, Cyrax, Sektor, Smoke, Ermac, Rain and Frost. Fifteen ninjas in the course of one ''very'' ninja-happy series.
* The ''{{Tenchu}}: Stealth Assassins'' series, in contrast to many ninja series, [[StealthBasedGame places full emphasis on the ninja's true strength: stealth]]. Ninjas in this series are unsuited for the open hand-to-hand combat of the Samurai, but are the undisputed masters of the stealth kill.
* The pop cultural version of ninjas are a common [[ClassAndLevelSystem character class]] in [=JRPGs=]:
** ''FinalFantasy I'', ''V'', and ''Tactics''.
** ''{{Disgaea}}'' and its sequels.
** ''MapleStory''.
* [[MegaMan ShadowMan]]. Who scores double points for being a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ninja robot]].
** Don't forget what arguably may be his {{Expy}}s, [[MegaManZero Phantom]] and [[MegaManBattleNetwork ShadowMan.EXE]].
* ''TriangleHeart3SweetSongsForever'' has [[HotShoujoDad Shiro,]] [[BrotherSisterTeam Kyouya, and Miyuki]] [[BadassFamily Takamachi]]. They're usually bodyguards, but occasionally do some assassination work as well.
* ''CityOfVillains'' has Mastermind characters who summon ninja minions, and Stalkers who have the Ninja Blade (attack) and Ninjitsu (defense) power sets.
* The main character of ''NinjaBlade''.
* Sam Fisher in ''SplinterCell'' is repeatedly confused for one by guards. Might go to the point of a running gag as whenever the topic is brought up in conversation the other guard calls them an idiot saying they don't exist. Possibly played for laughs as interrogating a certain guard will prompt him to ask you to kill him with your blowpipe.
** At one point in the first game, Lambert explicitly refers to Sam as a "SIGINT Ninja".
* ''[[GuildWars Guild Wars]]'' has ninja as well in the form of the Assassin profession. Their primary weapon consists of a pair of daggers, they can vanish in a puff of smoke and instantly reappear at at different spot, and they have a variety of spells that fit with the media portrayal of a ninja.
* The Dark Templar of ''{{Starcraft}}'' are Alien Ninjas who can bend light to make themselves invisible.
* One of the [[ShoutOut Seven samurai]] from ''{{Throne of Darkness}}'' is actually a Ninja.
* [[Shotoclone]] character Jago from ''KillerInstinct'' is a [[McNinja Buddhist Ninja]].
* Kisuke from ''Muramasa:TheDemonBlade'' is an Iga clan ninja. This is notable because Iga was one of the actual places in feudal Japan where there actually were shinobi clan.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* And then there's the the title character of the SNAFU Webcomic, [[http://tin.snafu-comics.com/?strip_id=0 TIN: The Incompetent Ninja]] who takes incompetent to it's logical extreme and is able to commit unbelievably violent acts to anyone ''except'' his target.
* [[TheAdventuresOfDoctorMcNinja Dr. McNinja]], as well as his mother, father, and brother. There are other ninja in the plotline too, but they're less prominent.
* The obscure, unknown webcomic ''{{Dreamaniac}}'' has resident ninja Andrew (who's actually from [[McNinja Switzerland]] and his younger brother, ninja-in-training Mark.
* ''{{Freefall}}'' had an arc involving a restaurant run by [[McNinja French ninja]] who would deliver food to your table without you ever noticing.
** Said arc also gave a tip of the hat to the ''real'' ninja invisibility, [[http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff1100/fv01092.htm here]].
* ''{{Megatokyo}}'' features Junpei, nowadays a ''l337'' ninja, thanks to his training under Largo.
* Ninjas appear a few times in ''OrderOfTheStick'' including a half-orc ninja who falls for Elan
* Ninjas play a large part in the final arc of BuckGodot, because every race in the known universe has them...
[[/folder]]


[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'', naturally.
* ''KimPossible'' is infested with them: a few one-shot bad guys, some specialized "embarrassment ninjas", a secret ninja high school where Ron spent a week as an exchange student, and of course Monkey Fist's ninja clan made entirely of monkeys.
** Sumo Ninja ftw!
*** You mean [[XiaolinShowdown Tubbimura]]?
* Basically every and any action/adventure cartoon in the U.S. is bound to feature Ninja at some point.
** ''SkunkFu'', ostensibly a children's show, has [[RuleOfCool Ninja Monkies]]!
* In ''{{Jackie Chan Adventures}}'' the Shadowkhan, a milita of demonic ninja, were often deployed by the bad guys to fight Jackie. Season 4 featured nine different groups of Shadowkhan.
* It took four seasons before ''SamuraiJack'' fought a ninja, but he did - a robot ninja at that. It was, at least, a stealthy one, made completely invisible whenever it stood in shadows. And then Jack revealed he could do the same trick with sunlight, leading to one of the most visually incredible fights in the series (which is ''saying'' something), [[RuleOfCool as the series is made of cool]]
* ''TransformersAnimated'' has [[TheStoic Prowl]] and [[JiveTurkey Jazz]] as goddamn NINJA ROBOTS. [[RuleOfCool How much cooler can you get?]] Ironically, Prowl's a pretty honourable guy as a ninja (as is Jazz) but the moment he puts on the Samurai Armour Upgrade, he becomes a totally arrogant asshole one step away from turning into a villain.
** Prowl was slightly arrogant already, as he seems to think a lot of his own abilities. This is tempered by the fact that he actually just is that {{badass}}.
* The short Australian CGI spoof ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSPy_4HYqGs Samurice]]''. Ninja Rice steal the sacred Soya Scroll, and {{Samurai}} hero Ricesashi has to get it back.
* Kyodai Ken (a.k.a. the Ninja) from ''BatmanTheAnimatedSeries''.
* In an episode of ''{{Thundercats}}'', Mumm-Ra summons samurai named Hachiman and tries to trick him into fighting Lion-O. When that doesn't pan out and one of his minions is captured, he tries to salvage the situation by doing the unexpected: ''Summon a ninja.'
-->'''Monkian''': I don't see anyone!
-->'''Mumm-Ra''': Look behind you.
-->''[Monkian looks behind himself, only to fall over in surprise.]''
-->'''Mumm-Ra''': This... is the NINJA! If the samurai has all honor, then the ninja has none. His methods are silence, secrecy, and stealth. And his weapons -- dagger and disguise...
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Other]]
* In a story published during spring training of 2007, Chicago Cubs then-closer (now starter) Ryan Dempster claimed to be training as a ninja. He was joking...we think.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* [[http://askaninja.com/ Ask a Ninja!]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Real Life]]
* Some of the more infamous {{Ninja}} in history (and some folk lores) especially originating from JidaiGeki:
** Hattori Hanzou, Iga ninja in service of the Tokugawa, and probably the MiyamotoMusashi equivalent of {{Ninja}}.
** Sarutobi Sasuke, one of the men counted as ''Sanada Ten Braves''. Bodyguard of Sanada Yukimura.
*** He inspired not one, but FOUR Ninja in [[Naruto]]: Hiruzen Sarutobi the Third Hokage; Konohamaru Sarutobi, who is basically Naruto's apprentice; Asuma Sarutobi who is Shikamaru's sensei; and finally Sasuke Uchiha himself.
**** Though Sarutobi's descendants could be contested, you forgot Salamander Hanzo.
** Fuuma Kotarou, Hojo's ninja, most famous for that myth about him luring and killing Hanzou in a naval battle, suicidally.
** Mochizuki Chiyome, Takeda ninja and credited as the founder of ''Kunoichi'' (female {{Ninja}}).
* This troper has seen two "genuine" ninja portrayed on the Discovery Channel. One was a spry young guy demonstrating the trick to ninja agility, and the other was a friendly looking old dude who infiltrated a test compound dressed as a maintenance guy.
* Every red-blooded man (and woman!) dreams of being, or fighting, ninjas.
* The SAS, Navy [=SEALs=], Spetznaz etc. are ninjas in all but name.
* Masaaki Hatsumi, who [[strike:learned actual Ninpo]] claims to be part of the last remaining ninpo lineage. YourMileageMayVary.
[[/folder]]

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<<|NinjaTropes|>>
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