Chapter IV
We all have our own truths and our own lies
After the fight Daiki, Sakura and I stayed in the nearby shrine for the night and got up early in the morning. I looked over at the corner of the room that I had my swords placed. Daiki had his swords inayofuata to his kitanda and Sakura had her tanto placed with my weapons. I really felt like taking a bath this morning but I don’t know if I will. I walked over to my swords and picked up the katana and sat inayofuata to the wall. “I guess it’s salama to say Daiki and Sakura won’t be up for a while” I say to myself. I look over to Daiki’s broad sword, I wonder if he would mind if I use it a while. I place my katana back against the ukuta and I tip-toe over to Daiki’s sword. I look at the fine leather covered handle and the steel is so pure that I just want to touch it. But I cant, that would make it rust; something peculiar about this sword is rather than just putting it in your ukanda it comes with a ukanda attached. After a careful look at the sword I wonder why he uses it. The blade isn’t sharp, it has no curve, it looks like wewe would have no grip on the handle, but I still want to try it out. I carefully strap on the ukanda on the sword careful not to make a noise and quietly head out the door. As soon as I am outside the building I draw the sword. It feels so awkward without a curve. I hold the sword pointing in front of me as though I was about to attack an opponent, the handle has room for only one hand and yet it is so heavy, even when I hold it with both hands it seems twice the weight of my katana. I want to return it to Daiki’s kitanda where it was but I have to try it out just once. I look around for something to test it on and see a person selling some tatami mats pass kwa so I approach him. “How much for one mat” I ask “five koban each” he said. I paid him five koban and took one tatami mat; I soon proceeded to set it up. With the tatami mat rolled up and standing up I am ready to see how well this sword can cut. I face the tatami mat the same way I face an opponent in battle. As I ready my sword I begin to fear what if Daiki has already woken up. Oh well I will worry about that later. I take a step mbele with my right foot and slash at the mat. It doesn’t turn out well because of the awkwardness of the straight blade and the heaviness. I fall a little off balance but I still slice all the way through the mat. I look at the blade and look back at the mat; it wasn’t a very clean cut. I look again at the broad sword’s dullish blade and wonder if Daiki ever sharpens it. I look again at the mat and decide to try again after all it might have been me and not the sword so I face the mat again but this time I hold the sword to the side instead of mbele like I did the last time. I swing the sword in zaidi of a hacking manner than a slashing one and much to my surprise it cuts through cleanly. I look at the half that was just cut off and I felt satisfied with the blade. I guess westerners aren’t as ignorant as I thought. Happily I walk back to the shrine when a samurai in full battle armor stops me. “Do wewe really think wewe can win a fight with a sword like that?” He said. “Daiki does it all the time so why can’t I” I say to him. “Your pathetic, almost an insult to samurai carrying around a sword like that. I will get rid of wewe now.” He said, and I can tell wewe I’m sure he means it. He puts his right hand on his sword ready to pull it out, I know I cat do the same because of the shape of my sword so I just pull it out casually as sweat runs down my face. I don’t think I can actually win with this kind of sword but as long as the Tokugawa shogun needs me I can’t let myself die. He pulls out his sword and I block it. The broad sword shows amazing resistance as though it can’t be moved. I think about Daiki’s technique and remembered that it relied a lot on stabbing so that’s what I will do. I place my left hand on my hip just as Daiki does when he fights and I point the sword at his chest. I would say he is smirking but I can’t tell through his facemask. I lunge at him but he blocks and he kicks me in the face causing my nose to bleed. At this rate I’m done for. I might have Lost already, I hold the blade again pointed at him with my left hand on my hip but I wait for him to strike first, I have an idea. He holds his sword above his head ready to slash downward and I songesha my sword a little to the left side. As he begins the slash I bring my sword up to hit his just in front of the hand guard, because of the weight of my sword it knocks his out of his hands, I then slam the back of the handle of my sword into his face causing a nasty dent in the nose of his facemask. I can see some blood from his nose trickle out from under the facemask. I could kill him now if I wanted without much of a problem but I don’t honestly want blood on Daiki’s blade. Just as I’m thinking of this Daiki and Sakura come out of the shrine to where me and this samurai are fighting. “Ryuu what are wewe doing with my sword.” Daiki says. The samurai in the armor sees them, Sakura with her tanto and Daiki with my sword and he runs in order to avoid a worse fight. I walk up to Daiki trying to look innocent. “I only wanted to borrow it.” I say “fine, just give it to me.” He says as I undo the ukanda to the sword and give it to him as he gives me my swords.
We all have our own truths and our own lies
After the fight Daiki, Sakura and I stayed in the nearby shrine for the night and got up early in the morning. I looked over at the corner of the room that I had my swords placed. Daiki had his swords inayofuata to his kitanda and Sakura had her tanto placed with my weapons. I really felt like taking a bath this morning but I don’t know if I will. I walked over to my swords and picked up the katana and sat inayofuata to the wall. “I guess it’s salama to say Daiki and Sakura won’t be up for a while” I say to myself. I look over to Daiki’s broad sword, I wonder if he would mind if I use it a while. I place my katana back against the ukuta and I tip-toe over to Daiki’s sword. I look at the fine leather covered handle and the steel is so pure that I just want to touch it. But I cant, that would make it rust; something peculiar about this sword is rather than just putting it in your ukanda it comes with a ukanda attached. After a careful look at the sword I wonder why he uses it. The blade isn’t sharp, it has no curve, it looks like wewe would have no grip on the handle, but I still want to try it out. I carefully strap on the ukanda on the sword careful not to make a noise and quietly head out the door. As soon as I am outside the building I draw the sword. It feels so awkward without a curve. I hold the sword pointing in front of me as though I was about to attack an opponent, the handle has room for only one hand and yet it is so heavy, even when I hold it with both hands it seems twice the weight of my katana. I want to return it to Daiki’s kitanda where it was but I have to try it out just once. I look around for something to test it on and see a person selling some tatami mats pass kwa so I approach him. “How much for one mat” I ask “five koban each” he said. I paid him five koban and took one tatami mat; I soon proceeded to set it up. With the tatami mat rolled up and standing up I am ready to see how well this sword can cut. I face the tatami mat the same way I face an opponent in battle. As I ready my sword I begin to fear what if Daiki has already woken up. Oh well I will worry about that later. I take a step mbele with my right foot and slash at the mat. It doesn’t turn out well because of the awkwardness of the straight blade and the heaviness. I fall a little off balance but I still slice all the way through the mat. I look at the blade and look back at the mat; it wasn’t a very clean cut. I look again at the broad sword’s dullish blade and wonder if Daiki ever sharpens it. I look again at the mat and decide to try again after all it might have been me and not the sword so I face the mat again but this time I hold the sword to the side instead of mbele like I did the last time. I swing the sword in zaidi of a hacking manner than a slashing one and much to my surprise it cuts through cleanly. I look at the half that was just cut off and I felt satisfied with the blade. I guess westerners aren’t as ignorant as I thought. Happily I walk back to the shrine when a samurai in full battle armor stops me. “Do wewe really think wewe can win a fight with a sword like that?” He said. “Daiki does it all the time so why can’t I” I say to him. “Your pathetic, almost an insult to samurai carrying around a sword like that. I will get rid of wewe now.” He said, and I can tell wewe I’m sure he means it. He puts his right hand on his sword ready to pull it out, I know I cat do the same because of the shape of my sword so I just pull it out casually as sweat runs down my face. I don’t think I can actually win with this kind of sword but as long as the Tokugawa shogun needs me I can’t let myself die. He pulls out his sword and I block it. The broad sword shows amazing resistance as though it can’t be moved. I think about Daiki’s technique and remembered that it relied a lot on stabbing so that’s what I will do. I place my left hand on my hip just as Daiki does when he fights and I point the sword at his chest. I would say he is smirking but I can’t tell through his facemask. I lunge at him but he blocks and he kicks me in the face causing my nose to bleed. At this rate I’m done for. I might have Lost already, I hold the blade again pointed at him with my left hand on my hip but I wait for him to strike first, I have an idea. He holds his sword above his head ready to slash downward and I songesha my sword a little to the left side. As he begins the slash I bring my sword up to hit his just in front of the hand guard, because of the weight of my sword it knocks his out of his hands, I then slam the back of the handle of my sword into his face causing a nasty dent in the nose of his facemask. I can see some blood from his nose trickle out from under the facemask. I could kill him now if I wanted without much of a problem but I don’t honestly want blood on Daiki’s blade. Just as I’m thinking of this Daiki and Sakura come out of the shrine to where me and this samurai are fighting. “Ryuu what are wewe doing with my sword.” Daiki says. The samurai in the armor sees them, Sakura with her tanto and Daiki with my sword and he runs in order to avoid a worse fight. I walk up to Daiki trying to look innocent. “I only wanted to borrow it.” I say “fine, just give it to me.” He says as I undo the ukanda to the sword and give it to him as he gives me my swords.