Togakure-ryū (戸隠流) is a historical tradition of ninjutsu known as the "School of the Hidden Door", allegedly founded during the Oho period (1161–1162) by Daisuke Nishina (仁科大助) (a.k.a.
[1] However, the history and early lineage of Togakure-ryū may be impossible to verify due to the antiquity of the time period[2] and its claimed historicity has been disputed by Watatani Kiyoshi, writer for the Bugei Ryūha Daijiten.
After Togakure, the title of Sōke (head of school) was recorded by Toda Shinryuken Masamitsu to have been passed down through other practitioners that kept the style secret from the outside world.
The Bugei Ryūha Daijiten has claimed that embellishments were made to the history of the Togakure-ryu, changing the age of things to make the school appear older than it is.
[3] Hatsumi Masaaki indicates that Nishina then changed his name to Togakure to reflect where he had come from and settled in the forests on the Kii Peninsula in the Iga Province.
[8] As stated by the Bujinkan organization, the lineage in the line of Sōke (grand masters) of Togakure-ryū, beginning with Daisuke Togakure, is as follows:[10] As a ninjutsu tradition influenced by the samurai martial arts of the Sengoku period, the style of Togakure-ryū consists of a small number of physical escape and evasion techniques, called ninpo taijutsu, and a series of sword attack patterns, or biken kata.
However, the majority of the art involves techniques of geography, meteorology, swimming, signaling, potion-making, fire-starting, concentration, disguise, impersonation, and other forms of knowledge suited for the unique information-gathering and infiltration roles of ninja.
The Bujinkan teaches that while Togakure-ryū contains some "historical kata", which are similar to the training in judo and aikido in that they require an opponent to attack and initiate the movements.
It enabled the wearer to use it as a defense against sword attacks and also to reach higher terrain, as it could be used to climb trees or walls, especially when worn with similar devices for the feet called ashiko.
[16] The Togakure ryu Ninjutsu Hidensho is a Japanese manuscript written by Takamatsu, in the possession of Masaaki Hatsumi, that documents modern Togakure-ryū.
[17] The training areas include:[18] Modern Togakure-ryu and various historical claims are taught by Masaaki Hatsumi (Takamatsu's successor) and the Bujinkan organization.