Aikijutsu . . . is a Japanese martial art, which, although usually practiced unarmed, is based on sword fighting movements. Originating as an unarmed combat method to be utilized by samurai warriors who had lost their weapons in battle, it naturally followed the armed samurai strategy of aiming for gaps in the opponents armor. One of the most vulnerable areas of an armored warrior was the wrist joint. Aikijutsu fighting techniques emphasize immediate disruption of the opponents balance, the use of the opponents own force against him, and sophisticated joint locks, often beginning with the wrist. NOTE: Japanese martial arts having names ending with the suffix "jutsu" such as Jujutsu, Kenjutsu, and Aikijutsu, are the old battle tested combative forms of the arts. With the decline of the warrior class in Japan, many arts were modified into a less dangerous form to be more suitable for practice by civilians. These arts were given names ending in the suffix "do" meaning "the way of." Judo was created from Jujutsu, Kendo was created from Kenjutsu, and Aikido was developed as a less combat oriented version of Aikijutsu.