With such a heavy importance placed on swordsmen in the world of One Piece, the legendary blades have always been an important concept since the early days of the series. Between the 12 Supreme Grade Blades and plenty more that have reached legendary status, many characters in the series seem incomplete without their iconic weapon by their side. Due to this, many fans have been curious about One Piece’s swords, constantly discussing the significance and history of each blade.

When it comes to the legendary swords in One Piece, while many fans instantly think of Roger’s Ace, Mihawk’s Yoru, or Shanks’s Gryphon, Issho’s Yakuza Kasen is one of the coolest swords the series has to offer. Being one of the 12 Supreme Grade Blades and wielded by a Navy Admiral, it seems not enough fans are talking about Issho and his iconic weapon. Although it seems likely that the method of introducing the true nature of the blade may play a role in this, Yakuza Kasen is still an important sword in the history of One Piece.

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What Is Issho’s Yakuza Kasen?

One Of The 12 Supreme Grade Blades

The 12 Supreme Grade Blades are One Piece’s 12 highest-quality bladed weapons the series has to offer. Although not every weapon is a sword, four out of the five weapons revealed so far are swords, with one being a naginata. So far, the currently revealed Supreme Grade Blades are Mihawk’s Yoru, Whitebeard’s historical naginata, Murakumogiri, Roger’s Ace, Issho’s Yakuza Kasen, and Shodai Kitetsu. With most of these weapons belonging to legendary pirates or the world’s best swordsman, Issho having one of these legendary weapons seems fairly out of place, as he is the only Marine with a Supreme Grade Blade so far.

Issho’s Yakuza Kasen is known as a shikomizue or a cane sword. Rather than being a standard blade, like many of the other Supreme Grade swords, Yakuza Kasen has the appearance of a normal cane, with the entire blade being hidden in what appears to be a walking stick. However, the weapon can be quickly drawn to take enemies off guard, who assume the object is a walking stick. This weapon is perfect for a blind character, like Issho, who may appear harmless at first but is one of the stronger characters in the series.

What Is The History And Powers Of The Sword?

A Wano Blade That Can Channel His Devil Fruit

• Yakuza Kasen Was Made By The Fugetsu Family
• He Rarely Ever Attacks Others With The Sword

With most information about the sword being revealed in an SBS, little is known about the exact history of Issho’s Yakuza Kasen. However, Oda did reveal that the blade itself was forged in Wano by the legendary swordsmith, Fugetsu Kisaburo, a member of the Fugetsu Family that was apparently eradicated by Kaido after Orochi took control of the island. Sometime after it was crafted, the blade would make its way off the island of Wano, until it eventually ended up in the hands of Issho, who wields it to this day.

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Interestingly, unlike other wielders of the Supreme Grade Blades, Issho utilizes an interesting technique with Yakuza Kasen, as he rarely uses the sword for offensive reasons. Instead, a majority of his uses for the blade involve blocking enemy attacks and using it to channel his fruit, the Press-Press Fruit. However, the sword itself seems to be a strong conduit for his Devil Fruit, allowing him to easily direct and manipulate gravitational energy using Yakuza Kasen.

What Techniques Can Issho Utilize With The Sword?

He Can Use The Sword To Manipulate Gravity

As for specific techniques of the blade, Issho utilizes Yakuza Kasen in his signature attack, Gravito. This attack involves manipulating gravity with his sword, allowing him to change the magnitude and direction of gravitational forces affecting his opponents. For example, the Marine Admiral, Issho, can apply downward gravitational force through his blade, crushing his opponents. On top of this, he can also use the ability Moko, a technique that channels gravitational energy into his blade to create a massive blast of force around himself.

Although he doesn’t use his blade to cut down his opponents, Yakuza Kasen still seems like the perfect weapon for Issho, who could be a future Fleet Admiral. Being a legendary blade, Yakuza Kasen seems to amplify Issho’s Devil Fruit ability, allowing him to increase the magnitude of his gravitational attacks. Hopefully, when Issho returns to the story of One Piece, fans will have the chance to see Yakuza Kasen in battle once again.

One Piece

Release Date

October 20, 1999

Network

Fuji TV

Directors

Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou

• 

  Mayumi Tanaka

  Monkey D. Luffy (voice)

• 

  Kazuya Nakai

  Roronoa Zoro (voice)