Kazuo Mori: Shinobi no mono 7 aka Ninja Band of Assassins - New Kirigakure Saizou (1966)

Cast: Raizô Ichikawa, Shiho Fujimura, Yûko Kusunoki, Takahiro Tamura
Tokugawa Ieyasu`s dreams have come true - he rules the entire land with his son Hidetada as Shogun in residence in Edo. However, Ieyasu really gives the orders from his castle at Sunpu.
In his sickbed, Ieyasu receives word from the priest Tenkai, that he is supremely powerful, but Ieyasu mentions that the Sanada clan ninja are still a threat because they will never give up. He suggests that the Fuma ryuu ninja may be able to fight the Iga ninja and reveals that he has summoned them to Sunpu.
The bodies of several executed ninja are removed from the execution grounds by a ninja using a smokescreen as cover.
As Saizou pays his respects at their graves, Karasu Sagenta thanks Saizou for retrieving the bodies and reiterates their desire to kill Ieyasu. The two disappear into an underground tunnel where their leader - Yatoji - reveals that they are the last of the ninja fighting against the Tokugawa regime. The kunoichi (female ninja) Akane reportst that Fuma Daijuro is coming with 30 men to protect Ieyasu. Yatoji says that this is a great opportunity for the remaining Iga ninja to show how powerful they are and then performs a kuji ritual.
The Fuma ninja meet with Ieyasu to make sure they can protect him. The ninja give a demonstration of their soujutsu (spear) and kajutsu (fire techniques) and Daijuro assures the daimyou that he will defeat the Iga ninja.
Akane uses her kunoichi skills to get some information about the interior of Ieyasu`s castle called O-oku where they think the daimyou`s bedchamber may be located. She later gives this information to Saizou. As they talk, Saizou asks Akane why she became a kunoichi even though the female ninja are not considered to be as skilled as `real` ninja. She responds that it was her destiny to become a kunoichi because her parents were killed at Sekigahara fighting against the Tokugawa forces. Saizou tells her that she should give it up and live like a human. Their discussion is ended when Saizou detects and kills one of the Fuma ninja hiding in a tree. ….







PW: malamute