Editing Ninja (section)

===Sabotage===
Arson was the primary form of sabotage practiced by the ninja, who targeted castles and camps.

The ''Tamon-in Nikki'' (16th century)—a diary written by abbot Eishun of [[Kōfuku-ji]] temple—describes an arson attack on a castle by men of the Iga clans.

{{blockquote|This morning, the sixth day of the 11th month of [[Tenbun]] 10 [1541], the Iga-''shu ''entered Kasagi castle in secret and set fire to a few of the priests' quarters. They also set fire to outbuildings in various places inside the ''San-no-maru''. They captured the ''ichi-no-maru'' (inner [[Motte-and-bailey castle|bailey]]) and the ''ni-no-maru'' (second bailey).}}

In 1558, [[Rokkaku Yoshikata]] employed a team of ninja to set fire to [[Sawayama Castle]]. A ''chūnin'' captain led a force of 48 ninja into the castle by means of deception. In a technique dubbed ''bakemono-jutsu'' ("ghost technique"), his men stole a lantern bearing the enemy's family crest (''[[Mon (emblem)|mon]]''), and proceeded to make replicas with the same ''mon''. By wielding these lanterns, they were allowed to enter the castle without a fight. Once inside, the ninja set fire to the castle, and Yoshitaka's army would later emerge victorious. The mercenary nature of the ''shinobi'' is demonstrated in another arson attack soon after the burning of Sawayama Castle. In 1561, commanders acting under [[Kizawa Nagamasa]] hired three Iga ninja of ''genin'' rank to assist the conquest of a fortress in [[Maibara, Shiga|Maibara]]. Rokkaku Yoshitaka, the same man who had hired Iga ninja just years earlier, was the fortress holder—and target of attack. The ''Asai Sandaiki'' writes of their plans: "We employed ''shinobi-no-mono'' of Iga... They were contracted to set fire to the castle". However, the mercenary ''shinobi'' were unwilling to take commands. When the fire attack did not begin as scheduled, the Iga men told the commanders, who were not from the region, that they could not possibly understand the tactics of the ''shinobi''. They then threatened to abandon the operation if they were not allowed to act on their own strategy. The fire was eventually set, allowing Nagamasa's army to capture the fortress in a chaotic rush.