Ninja

暗殺者 · Assassin — A death specialist who finishes it all with a single strike

The assassin specializes in eliminating targets with a single decisive strike, a stealth combat class. Wielding shadow movement, poison, hidden weapons, and surprise attacks, assassins target enemy weaknesses through reconnaissance and infiltration rather than open combat. Historically the most famous group is the 11th-13th century Hashishin sect of Syria — origin of the English word 'assassin' — alongside Japanese ninja, Indian Thuggee cult, and Byzantine imperial spies. In fantasy, the most common depiction is a black-hooded masked dagger-wielder, a staple class in Assassin's Creed, D&D's Assassin class, and similar games.

盜賊 · Rogue / Thief — A versatile problem-solver who works in the shadows

The rogue specializes in non-combat skills like infiltration, trap disarmament, lockpicking, stealth, and deception, rather than direct combat — a versatile problem-solver class. Using light leather armor and daggers, rogues avoid direct confrontation and excel at backstab attacks targeting weaknesses. The archetype of D&D's Rogue class, an essential profession in every fantasy RPG, taking responsibility for traps and treasure in dungeon-exploring parties. Literary variants include Tolkien's hobbit Bilbo Baggins and Discworld's characters. Their morality spans a wide spectrum from righteous Robin Hood-style thieves to ruthless cutthroats.

武士 · Samurai — A Japanese warrior who unifies martial arts and the Way

The samurai (武士) was a professional warrior class that ruled Japan for about 700 years from the Kamakura shogunate of the 12th century until the Meiji Restoration of 1868. Initially a military class guarding emperors and nobles, they seized political power from the late Heian period to establish warrior governments (shogunates). More than soldiers, samurai were an honor class following the moral code of bushido, with loyalty (chū), propriety (rei), courage (yū), righteousness (gi), and benevolence (jin) as core virtues. The privilege of wearing two swords (daisho) — katana (long sword) and wakizashi (short sword) — was theirs alone, and the tradition of seppuku (ritual disembowelment) when honor was lost became symbolic of Japanese culture. Miyamoto Musashi, Takeda Shingen, and Oda Nobunaga are exemplary figures.