Around 90 self-proclaimed ninjas from across Japan gathered in Koka, Shiga Prefecture, for the 43rd All-Japan Ninja Championship, competing in traditional ninja-inspired challenges including shuriken throwing, castle wall climbing, and running across water to claim the title of Japan's top ninja. (News On Japan)

Physical fitness among Japanese women in their 30s and 40s has been declining, according to the Sports Agency's fiscal 2025 Physical Fitness and Athletic Ability Survey, with experts pointing to the disproportionate burden of housework and childcare as a major factor limiting opportunities for exercise. (News On Japan)

Japan will launch a new tax-free investment program for children in January 2027, allowing parents to invest up to 600,000 yen a year on behalf of children aged 17 or younger while permitting withdrawals from age 12 for expenses such as education and living costs. (News On Japan)

Japan’s highly competitive graduate recruitment market remains favorable for students, but signs of change are emerging as the average number of job offers held by candidates declines and companies experiment with new ways to secure talent. (News On Japan)

Recognizing the patterns and issues within a dysfunctional family can be a transformative step toward improving personal relationships. (News On Japan)

A first-of-its-kind sleep competition was held in Tokyo on October 5, with contestants competing for a 2.22 million yen top prize by trying to achieve the deepest, fastest and most stable sleep during a 90-minute session. (News On Japan)

Osaka Metropolitan University has suspended classes across all faculties after a suspected ransomware attack shut down about 500 servers and disabled key campus systems, while officials investigate whether personal information relating to at least 130,000 students, graduates and employees was leaked. (News On Japan)

Graduates of Japan's colleges of technology, commonly known as Kosen, are attracting growing attention from employers, with the ratio of job openings to applicants exceeding 35 as companies increasingly seek graduates who can contribute immediately to the workforce, including major banks and securities firms. (News On Japan)

A major new railway training center equipped with full-scale tracks, crossings and signals has opened in Kasugai, Aichi Prefecture, as Japan's railway industry faces a growing shortage of skilled workers that could exceed 20,000 by fiscal 2028. (News On Japan)

The University of Tokyo has selected professor Yuko Fujigaki, 64, as its next president, making her the first woman to lead Japan's most prestigious university. (News On Japan)

Performers at Universal Studios Japan are raising concerns about demanding working conditions behind the Osaka theme park's colorful shows and character appearances, with some describing the work as an example of employers taking advantage of workers' enthusiasm for jobs they once dreamed of doing. (News On Japan)

Elementary school students from across the Kansai region gathered in Osaka to share creative ideas for building a sustainable city, with proposals ranging from replacing waste incinerators with mushroom-growing facilities to preserving Osaka's distinctive local shopping culture. (News On Japan)

Parents in Japan are increasingly taking an active role in finding marriage partners for their adult children, with matchmaking events that allow mothers and fathers to meet prospective in-laws gaining popularity as the country's unmarried population continues to grow. (News On Japan)

A groundbreaking ceremony was held in Kyoto City on September 15 for Ronald McDonald House Kyoto, a residential facility where children undergoing medical treatment will be able to stay together with their families. (News On Japan)

Elementary school students in Fukuoka got a hands-on lesson in the importance of taxes on September 11, lifting a 10-kilogram replica of 100 million yen as part of a class designed to show how public money supports society. (News On Japan)

Raccoons are increasingly appearing in urban areas of Japan, including residential neighborhoods near Shin-Osaka Station, raising concerns over disease, attacks on people and agricultural damage that reached about 700 million yen nationwide last year. (News On Japan)

Japanese 15-year-olds spend an average of 2.3 hours browsing social media during their weekday free time, the shortest amount among 24 countries surveyed, according to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (News On Japan)

Renovation work has begun at a hospital in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture, as the city prepares to introduce a baby hatch for parents unable to raise their children and a confidential birth system that allows pregnant women to give birth without publicly disclosing their identities. (News On Japan)

A disaster prevention experiment has shown how quickly a rain-soaked slope can collapse once visible cracks appear, highlighting the need for people in landslide-prone areas to evacuate before conditions become critical as the risk of disasters remains elevated through early next week. (News On Japan)

Nearly 60% of Japanese high school students consider learning about different cultures "very important," the highest proportion among Japan, the United States, China and South Korea, according to a survey released by the National Institution for Youth Education. (News On Japan)