In Japanese, the word “Shi” can mean, depending on the context, either “the number four” or “death.” That is why in Japan 4 is considered an unlucky number in much the same way 13 is in the West.
Object: A player loses if reduced to 4 pieces.
Samurais vs. Ninjas. Samurais go first.
Pieces slide like a Chess Queen. There are 8 pieces per side, set up on the players first row.
Jump Attack: Captures of enemies can only be made by jumping over a single, friendly piece along the path of attack. Any number of unoccupied spaces, including none, may exist between the attacking piece, the piece being jumped, and the piece to be captured. This is much like the attack of the Cannon piece in Chinese Chess. Except here the intervening “screen” must be a friendly piece and never an enemy.
—description from the designer