It is practiced in the United States, Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Europe, Mexico and Okinawa.
[1] Born of wealthy parents in Kume, Okinawa, Nakaima went to Fuzhou, China at the age of 19 for advanced studies in the martial arts.
In China, a former guard to the Chinese embassies in the Ryukyu Islands introduced Nakaima to a Chinese boxing teacher known as Ryū Ryū Ko, who also taught to Sakiyama Kitoku and, according to some sources,[citation needed] Kanryo Higashionna many years later.
He was trained in a variety of arts and skills ranging from combative techniques to Chinese medicine and herbal healing remedies.
Before leaving China, Nakaima traveled to the Fujian, Canton, and Beijing areas, where he collected a number of weapons and scrolls in order to further his experience in the martial arts.