The practice of kata are very important in the Matayoshi Kobudo system. Kata, as in any important traditional martial art, represent the core and heart of the school. In the system of Matayoshi Kobudo, kata also pay tribute to the long and hard work that Matayoshi Shinko Sensei spent traveling to learn the diffrent weapons arts that are part of the ryuha nowadays. It was in Okinawa, Hokkaido, and China that Matayoshi Shinko Sensei received the majority of his exposure and training in various weapons arts that he used to formulate his school. First Matayoshi Sensei learned Bo-jutsu, Sai-jutsu, Kama-jutsu, and Ueku-jutsu in Gushikawa Village in Okinawa. Later, also in Okinawa, in Chatan Town, he learned the arts of Tunkua-jutsu and Nunchaku-jutsu. In Manchuria he gained exposure in the arts of Ba-jutsu (bow and arrow while riding a horse), Shuriken-jutsu, and Nagenawa-jutsu (rope throwing). In Shanghai he learned the arts of Nunti-jutsu, Timbe-jutsu, and Suruchin-jutsu.