URBAN ninja mums are urging frightened women to take back the streets.

The fear factor, fueled by reports of weekly stabbings and bashings in Melbourne, is feeding a revival of the ancient Japanese art of fighting.

And nunchukkas, sais and staffs are not always the weapon of choice.

“I am a weapon,” black belt ninja Annette Christopherson declares.

At just 150cm tall, the 50-something mum is a force to be reckoned with, without all the brawn.

One Melbourne establishment, the Kevin Hawthorne Ninja School, is training mums and dads – and even kids as young as five – in the art of ninjitsu to protect themselves from street violence, bullying and home invasions.