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Japan was recently unified by the Shogun (in those days, the highest ranking military officer, or Samurai, became ruler of Japan), Tokugawa Ieyasu, but was not formerly recognized by the Okinawan government. Japan responded with the invasion and removed the existing King, Sho Nei, who was forced to live in Tokyo, Edo as it was called then, for three years, before his return. Upon return, Sho Nei was now politically obligated to Japan. Japan knew of the significant importance of Okinawa. The country still required the economic contact with China via the Okinawa trade markets but had not established that trade directly with China. This lead to an unusual facade of the Okinawans showing loyalty to the Chinese as if still under a tributary relationship with China, a bond originally formed in 1372 with the Chinese Emperor. Japanese rulers and anything leading one to believe of a Japanese invasion were hidden away whenever Chinese diplomats visited.
Japan continued with a ban on weapons and kept the nobility in Shuri. This ban continued through most of Okinawa's history. During Sho Shin's reign, two factions formed that practiced the combat arts in secrecy. The nobility learned and developed te, a fighting style using the hand, especially in a closed fist. The farmers developed a fighting style using weapons based on farming tools. The weapons art became known as Ryukyu bujutsu, meaning Ryukyu weapon arts.
These fighting styles continued to develop through the next century. Okinawans resigned themselves to a long term occupation and Japan had entered into a renaissance period in the early 1600s. With no rivals to speak of, the samurai class studied martial arts, literature, philosopny, the arts, and the Tea Ceremony. The unarmed style of fighting continued to develop with influence from China and te became known as T'ang-te or Tode ('Chinese hand') in the 1800s. Three separate styles emerged in the urban centers of three towns near the south eastern shore of Okinawa. The town of Shuri, historically the town where the lords were moved during Sho Shin's reign, remained primarily a town of kings and nobles. Naha, the port city, was composed of merchants and business people. Further to the North is Tomari, where fishermen and farmers lived. These three towns developed individual martial art styles: Shuri-te, Naha-te, and Tomar-te, collectively known as Okinawa-te. These styles were similar but differed in their influences. Shuri-te was similar to the Shaolin Temple boxing style, Naha-te was influeced by Taoist techniquest, and Tomar-te blended both these styles. By the nineteenth century, Shuri-te and Tomar-te became known as Shorin-ryu (flexible pine school) and Naha-te as Goju-ryu (the hard and soft school). Shorin-ryu and Goju-ryu matched the two basic styles that exist in kung fu.