The secret of the ninja does not lie with stealth, but with effective simplicity.  Typical ninja clans and societies often started with little to no money to be spending on expensive swords and armor.  They had to draw with whatever they had to use from whatever they could find, often from peasant rice fields and villages.  Their work required a combination of things that focused strictly on the ultimate goal:  Espionage or Assassination.  They were paid to do a job, and to not get caught.  Stealth, good planning, and a dedication to athleticism and combat training would do all that, but they soon realized that having expensive katana swords, while excellent to have, wasn’t really necessary.  A sharpened kama or a hand axe often did the job just as well as a typical sword did, and if they lost such a cheap weapon in the middle of an operation, it was no big loss and was easily replaced.  This is a common facet of what makes ninja weapons “ninja” in that they are weapons that aren’t going to be treasured.  Well, except by you of course and those who appreciate their elegant simplicity.  One might say that the Sai, a three pronged weapon, is an exception to this rule, but if you were to look at these Metal Sais – Set of Two – 18”, you’d see that they’re very simple for any blacksmith to make, and very simple to use.  They’re designed to catch a samurai’s sword in the upward curved hilt and be able to disarm him quickly in order to return to a hasty retreat.  The tips of these weapons were often sharpened, but most of the time they were blunt because peasants who had to take down samurai themselves had to be sure not to unduly harm them lest they face death themselves.  Still, they are quite handsome to look at and will certainly draw envious looks from those who see them on your wall.