Jet Black ad the Ninja Wind

Published Nov. 2013
Tuttle Publishing
$17.99 | 320 pgs.



#1 Bestseller on Amazon

Jet Black is the last living female ninja in the world.

There’s only one problem–she doesn’t know it. Everyone else does, and they all want to capture her and uncover her secret–a secret she doesn’t even know she has.

Will the discovery of Jesus’s bone in Japan, the development of a totally ambiguous high tech language, and Navajo military strategy lead Jet to the ancient treasure on sacred Emishi land?  When her mother dies, Jet must go to Japan to find the link between these three mysterious quests–or die trying.

Stalked by bounty hunters and desperately in love with the one man sent to kill her, Jet summons up years of buried training to unleash her hidden power.  But are they strong enough to protect the treasure, preserve the ancient culture, and save a sacred mountain from destruction?

To emerge triumphant, can Jet become the ninja wind?

Leza co-wrote this book with her husband, Shogo Oketani. Leza and Shogo often write together, and, only occasionally, drive each other crazy. Building a bridge from East to West, they’ve collaborated on a book about kanji, a collection of poetry by a pacifist Japanese soldier, and this novel about a young female ninja. Other couples finish each other’s sentences. They finish each other’s books.

Awards for Jet Black and the Ninja Wind


2013-2014 APALA Asian/Pacific American Award for Young Adult Literature Winner
2015 Sakura Medal Nominee
2014 SCBWI Crystal Kite Award Shortlist

Multimedia for Jet Black and the Ninja Wind