Editing Shuriken (section)

==Usage==
[[File:Various Shuriken.jpg|thumb|250px|Various forms of Shuriken]]

Shuriken targets were primarily the more exposed parts of the body: the eyes, face, hands, or feet.<ref name=bmbb/><ref name=":2" />{{Better source needed|reason=Citation is non-scholarly and potentially unreliable source (commercial non-news magazine).|date=November 2020}} Shuriken, despite low mass, were capable of dealing lethal blows at short ranges. In some cases, shuriken were capable of partially disemboweling targets.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20642255/|pmid = 20642255|year = 2010|last1 = Kettner|first1 = M.|last2 = Gade|first2 = G.|last3 = Ramsthaler|first3 = F.|last4 = Shah|first4 = S.|last5 = Pape|first5 = A.|last6 = Theisen|first6 = A.|last7 = Schmidt|first7 = P.|title = Experimental studies on the wounding capacity of recently developed shuriken/Throwing stars and their legal categorization--an interdisciplinary view|journal = Archiv für Kriminologie|volume = 225|issue = 5–6|pages = 167–180}}</ref>

Shuriken, especially ''hira-shuriken'', were also used in novel ways—they could be embedded in the ground, injuring those who stepped on them (similar to a [[caltrop]]), wrapped in a [[Incendiary device|fuse to be ignited and thrown]] to cause fire, or wrapped in a cloth soaked in poison and lit to cover an area with a [[List of highly toxic gases|cloud of poisonous smoke]].<ref name=DD>{{cite book | last = Draeger | first =Donn F.|title = Ninjutsu: The Art of Invisibility | publisher = Tuttle martial arts | year =2008 | location =Tokyo | pages =72–73| isbn =978-0-8048-3937-2 }}</ref> They could also be used as a handheld weapon in close combat.<ref name =aabb>{{cite journal | last = Adams | first = Andy| title = The Battle for Ninja Supremacy| journal = Black Belt| volume = 23| issue = 12| pages = 21–24| publisher = Active Interest Media| year = 1985 }}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=Citation is non-scholarly and potentially unreliable source (commercial non-news magazine).|date=November 2020}}

There are reports of shuriken being coated with poison, intended either as a throwing weapon or to be left in a conspicuous place for a victim to pick up.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Steele| first = David|  title = Japanese Daggers| journal = Black Belt| volume = 19| issue = 2| pages =55–60 | publisher = Black Belt, Inc.| year = 1981 }}</ref><ref name=":2" />{{Better source needed|reason=Citation is non-scholarly and potentially unreliable source (commercial non-news magazine).|date=November 2020}} Other reports indicate that shuriken may have been buried in dirt or animal feces and allowed to harbor the bacterium ''[[Clostridium tetani]]''—if the point penetrated a victim deeply enough, the bacteria transferred into the wound could cause a then-incurable [[tetanus]] infection.<ref name=":2" />

Shuriken are simple weapons, but their historical value has increased.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> Unlike the ''[[katana]]'' and other bladed weapons, antique shuriken are not often well preserved (although some are blackened in ash to prevent corrosion), largely due to their expendable nature.<ref name=cvg>{{cite book | last = Gruzanski | first =Charles V.|title = Ninja Weapons: Chain and Shuriken | publisher = Tuttle martial arts | year =1991 | location =Tokyo | pages =91–92| isbn =978-0-8048-1705-9 }}</ref>