So this subject has come up every once in a while with students at the dojo and newer martial arts practitioners. Is ninjitsu a true martial art? I have been told that it is extremely secretive and therefore if I ever do meet a practitioner I probably would not know. But aren't the martial arts guided by the martial way and bushido? Ninjitsu, to my limited knowledge, seems to be about assasination and stealth but also developing the mind and body like other martial arts. However, I cannot recall being taught or reading about assasinations being part of the martial way. If anything it is against it as it is essentially and, once again from my limited knowledge, without allowing the victim to fight back. This does not seem to follow bushido. Perhaps I am wrong. Any opinions and/or facts to illuminate the subject?