It is possible, of course, that a Soke may decide not to appoint a successor
We source our JO from the Kukishinden Ryu, of course, and the Daito Ryu, and we have the Gata passed down from Shindo Muso Ryu
The Shindo was founded by Gonnosuke around 1600 - and no, we don't believe he beat Musashi in a dual
Shimizu Takaji was the 25th Soke of Shindo and he died in 1978
In 1940, during WW2, Takaji developed the modern JODO, which became the Seitei Jodo taught alongside KENDO at the Zen Nihon Kendo Renmei, and developed the formal Seitei GATA for them in the 1960s
Before his death in 1978, Takaji decided not to appoint an heir/successor, destroyed his scrolls, and so the ART died with him
His Senior Student was Ichitaro Kuroda who many thought would become the next Soke Grandmaster, number 26, and many acted and treated him as if he was - he died in 2000
So while Seitei JODO is part of KENDO training, with it's 12 Kihon and 12 Kata, a Modern GOSHIN school, there are still schools of Shindo Muso JOJUTSU in Japan who use the full 64 Gata from the Traditional GOSHIN system - though of course there is no Soke Grandmaster
The point is, a Soke can decide not to appoint a successor and pass on the KORYO Ryuha, and, just as we see here with Shindo, could well happen with our nine NINJA Ryuha
Hatsumi Sensei chose not to pass on his entire school and all nine Ryuha to one successor, though Ishizuka would have been the obvious and most popular choice, but to "split" them this way
A lot of what I have written above is speculative based on, my own years of training, what has happened, what may happen, discussions with my friends and "colleagues", and what this would mean for my personal development and training, and what we pass into the next generation of STMA
eg,
we already have and practice the Togakure and Kukishin Sword
If I go to Noguchi Soke and learn the Gyokko Ryu Sword, and go to Nagato Soke and learn the Koto Ryu Sword, I will then pass that into STMA - and you will be some of the first people in the UK, the first people outside Japan, to learn this
and just as we have the 1987 Ed Parker KENPO that the Tracy people don't have, we will have the NINPO that the Genbukan, Jinenkan and Toshindo don't have
speculation,
if this happens in the next three years, we would have this at STMA by 2027
Only 40 years between KENPO and NINPO to get ahead of everyone else in both systems
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The potential is potentially exciting (not the best translation) if the Soke start sharing more depth of the specific Ryu
For Weapons we take the four main weapons from Kukishinden and we have the Togakure Ninja Biken
we have Shuriken, Shuko and the "Chain Sickle and variations" (best translation)
However each Ryuha has it's own specific methods for the common Ninja weapons
Gyokko, Koto, Shinden Fudo
has methods for
Sword, Shuriken, Spear, Bo, Jo
I have seen and practiced some of these in training, but not in depth
I have done a lot of the weapons training from Shinden Fudo, though that was because of the teacher I was with at the time covering and practicing those moves and gata, what was covered at the Toda Dojo training, and we did this on Grass
So now will Ishizuka teach the specific Gyokko Sword, Noguchi the Koto Sword, etc
after all, they have these methods, and the option to pass them on, so they are preserved
Then the NINPO schools that have not been shared in depth or detail, we now have Soke and their own created Instructors who will be able to do this
Gikan, Gyokushin, Kumogakure
When I started NINJUTSU training in the 1980s, we did everything as Togakure, or through the "lens" of Togakure - we were not shown what was Koto and Gyokko Ryu until later
With the lessons from Shinden Fudo, using DakenTaijutsu STRIKING and Jutaijutsu GRAPPLING as the starting point, we learnt how Gyokko Ryu KOSHI and Koto Ryu KOPPO fitted into this Striking as in depth study, the way Takamatsu was trained at the Toda Dojo
( This is no different from how we use Karate, Boxing, Thai and Savate in our KB Phase, starting from one system and POV and then "adding" the next - Karate adding Boxing, Boxers learning to kick, etc )
We learn Togakure sword, the shorter NINJA sword, in parallel with the sword of Kukishin, the battlefield Katana
We learn the Togakure NINJA methods, Invisibility, Escape, Evasion, the Taijutsu that makes stealth, hiding, disguise, silent walking, crawling, climbing and swimming work
so will we now have access to full detail and training for Gyokushin and Komugakure - Sutemi, Armour, alternate ways to move, jump, apply techniques and weapons
And GIKAN
- just as we have KARATE from the schools of Shotokan and Goju, which we pair with Gyokko and Koto, which we pair with Savate and Thai, just as we have the third harder Karate school in KYOKUSHIN, will we now have the third harder KOPPO school in GIKAN
and do we have to study TYR Jutaijutsu in depth with the new Soke and his Instructors to have the "addition" of Gikan "given" and "added"
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For STMA this does not change anything, not directly, and not immediately
What it does mean, potentially, as the Soke for each Ryuha decide how they will pass on the teachings, how it will expand, and then what their inheritor, next Soke does with it, what becomes available and in what structure
In my personal training I would look to do what I have done with Karate and Jujutsu and study the schools in further depth with the new teachers, going deeper into each one
Which means I would be able to add to the STMA "syllabus" and share this at Sessions with the STMA Members
This is speculative at this stage of course, and would happen in the late 2020s, into the 2030s, and beyond
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Hatsumi Soke, now passed 90, in the new 2020s decade, has separately passed on the 9 schools to a different Shihan, each of who now becomes SOKE, Grandmaster of that school
KOTO Ryu - Noguchi becomes 19th Soke
GYOKKO Ryu - Ishizuka becomes 29th Soke
SHINDEN FUDO RYU - Nagato becomes 27th Soke
TOGAKURE RYU to Tsutsui Takumi who becomes 35th Soke
KUKISHINDEN Ryu to Iwata Yoshio who becomes 29th Soke
TAKAGI YOSHIN RYU to Sakasai Norio who becomes 18th Soke
GIKAN RYU also to Norio who becomes 16th Soke
GYOKUSHIN Ryu to Kan Jun'ichi who becomes 22nd Soke
KUMOGAKURE Ryu to Furuta Kōji who becomes 15th Soke
The first three senior Shihan, from the "original house" I know well, dating back to my training time in the 80s and 90s, and they each now head one of the three TODA schools
The rest I am not too familiar with, having only heard of them through others, they are more "recently" promoted
With Tanemuru and then Manaka leaving to set up their own organisations, this would have left a gap from the "original house" Shihans
Togakure Ryu going to Tsutsui surprised a lot of people as he is not known as a high ranking Dai Shihan, and in fact is an actor in Japan, known for being one of the Power Rangers
Kukishinden, as we know is the main ISHITANI school, and then Takagi Yoshin Ryu, now have their own Sokes
- these are not exclusively passed through Takamatsu, as other families have versions of the teachings, including the KUKI family itself
- while Tak learnt TYR from Ishitani, he also learnt under Mizuta, and this is where he inherits the Soke title and scroll
- several families have the TYR densho, and their own version of the way they developed their teaching vehicle
- because we receive these down from Takamatsu, they have the NINJA "feel" and approach to them in our teaching and practice
Gikan ryu is interesting as this has not been given outright to a new Shihan, but to Norio along with TYR
- it could well have been given with to Yoshio with the Kukishin, to keep them together, as they both came from Ishitani
- perhaps, at least this way, we now have a hard KOPPO striking style paired with the JU grappling style
- possibly the next generation if these are passed down together, will see a school with a system more like Kempo Jujutsu
Most interesting is the two NINPO schools, not taught much and never taught on their own, now having new SOKE to take them to the next generation, Gyokushin and Kumogakure
This next generation, going into the late 2020s, then into the 30s, will see if the SOKE begin to teach and qualify people specifically in their Ryuha, as they will pass the teaching to the new Generation, into the future, and later choose their own successor, the next Soke in that line
Each Soke is, of course, a fully trained DAI SHIHAN in all 9 Schools, they now each "own" one of the schools
Also, will the Soke work together, will they develop in parallel, and will there be cross training
- we always maintain you need to learn Koto Ryu and Gyokko Ryu together to get the full transmission - with Noguchi and Ishizuka, who learnt these together and are now Soke of one each, at least the first generation will be fully cross trained
- the same applies to Shinden Fudo, which we know was the "lead" system at the Toda Dojo, and the one that Tak learnt first, now passed to Nagato, both the Dakentaijutsu and Jutaijutsu systems
Ishizuka was the most senior of Hatsumi students, senior to Noguchi and Nagato, and the person many thought was most likely to be "Next Grand Master" and inherit ALL nine schools - he now heads the Gyokko, which is the oldest school, and where Koto, Gyokushin, Gikan, and Togakure derive their movements and base waza - possibly now viewed as "first among equals"
GIKAN Ryu still has the debate about whether TAKAMATSU passed it to Sato who passed it direct to Tanemura, or whether Tak passing it to Hatsumi makes that line correct
Tanemura claims to be current Soke of Gikan Ryu as well as Head of the Genbukan
Perhaps this is why the Hatsumi "version" has been passed to the TYR Soke as a "second" Sokeship, instead of a new "independent" Soke
Manaka, of course, though Head of the Jinenkan, and Dai Shihan of the 9 schools in his own right, misses out on the chance to become a SOKE of a Ryuha
The potential opportunity here, in the next Generation over the next decades, would be to directly train in the Ninja Ryu as the SOKE establish how that will be passed on
If things has been different, I personally feel that Manaka would have been ideal choice for KOTO Ryu, with Noguchi better suited to TYR
Had Tanemura stayed around, he would have been ideal for Togakure
Seno Shihan, the other member of the Original House died a few years ago, otherwise no doubt he would be Head of one of the schools now - I personally feel he would have been the ideal Soke for Kukishinden
So the Dream Team Wish List, what could have been for the main six schools
Ishizuka - Gyokko
Manaka - Koto
Tanemura - Togakure
Noguchi - Takagi Yoshin
Seno - Kukishinden
Nagato - Shinden Fudo
which leaves the three lesser known schools available to whoever. Gikan, Komugakure, Gyokushin
