Oniwaban

The Oniwaban have been depicted as the main characters in the television series Ōedo Sōsamō (an undercover group of secret agents, including Isaka Jūzō, Jūmonji Koyata, Konami and others) and Shōgun no Onmitsu!

Kage Jūhachi (the group of Kanō Ametarō: Miki, Otojirō and Inokichi, brought together by Tokugawa Munetada) and in the film Oniwaban (known in English as Demon Spies).

[3] They were also featured in the TV series Abarenbō Shōgun (being the spies and bodyguards for Yoshimune, including Akane, Ayame, Gorōta, Hayate, Osono, Jūmonji Hayato, Koyuki, Kaede, Nagisa, Ōtsuki Hanzō, Saizō, Satsuki and Sukehachi), as well as in the manga/anime series Ga-rei (Hattori Naizou, a member of the Judgement Day brigade, was an Oniwaban in life), Gintama (Ayame Sarutobi, Zenzo Hattori and Jiraia), Lone Wolf and Cub, Peace Maker (Shinsengumi member Yamazaki Ayumu), Samurai Champloo (Kariya Kagetoki), The Dagger of Kamui (the oniwaban monk Tenkai) and Yoshimune (the character Kunoichi, in love with the titular character).

Some depictions feature the oniwaban in a time period following end of the shogunate, like the manga/anime series Rurouni Kenshin (featuring the now-unemployed Oniwaban group including Aoshi Shinomori, Beshimi, Han'nya, Hyottoko, Okina, Shikijō and Makimachi Misao[4]) and Yokujō Climax (Hayato); others take place in an altogether fictional alternative worlds, even in the futuristic science fiction setting, such as in the case of the anime Chou SD Sengokuden Bushin Kirahagane (Jyuuha Gundam), the video game Red Earth (Oniwaban leader Kenji), and the miniatures game Infinity.

In the anime series Sailor Moon the name of the villain of the week Oniwabandana[5] (renamed Ninjana in the English version) is also an obvious pun on the oniwaban.