Back then If you were a child, you would have a coming of age ceremony to be given katana at 15

Beautiful coal

no gloves?

Oh I thought you were giving me high five

What are you going to do now?

Basically to weld the iron, we have to knead the iron

to make it usable to make Katana

And after that?

Are you going to strike the iron again?

You strike it first, and bring it back

and put it in again

What is the process now?

Try not to burn it so much. If it melts, it's over

Just when it's about to melt, send in the wind

That's the process now

Can you tell when to take it out by looking at the color of the flame?

Color and sound -Sound?

and the shapes of the flames

Aim for the middle

You don't have to do this much,

I don't want to mess this up

You can't finish until I say so

How long has it taken to get where you are?

Preparing coals 3 years, big maul assistant 5 years

Finding the right heat, forever is what they say

but 5 years and you become useful

There seems to be many types of swords there,

so could you tell us more?

Generally speaking, the blade length of up to 30cm is the short sword

Is this the date? -Yes, the date

This is a really cute short sword

You can see it clearly when the light is upon it

Longer than 30cm and under 60cm is the Wakizashi

Longer than 60cm is the Tachi

What is that?

This is called the Uchiko

This is like the carving stone's minature version

You take away the excessive oil on it

The titles are here

My thoughts are written here with the Chinese characters

The shape

And looking at the curve. This one has a quite a huge curve from the middle

The surface of the iron can be seen after it has been struck multiple times

Looking at how the iron is done is another way to enjoy it

You can see the design on the surface when you shed light on it

You can see clearly how the lines come in

Seeing the design is another way to enjoy Katana

When you shed light, -I can see it

Quite strong -Turn it around

It's quite different

It's quite a heavy responsibility

I think it was sharpened by Mr. Manatsu

Do you put in designs here?

Depending on the sword, we would add design or carvings

This was 2007, when I just started

It's like a shorter version of Kodachi. This is the long one

This is the shortened one

This is quite unique. A design of the clan?

This was to show the surface of the iron so you can see the rugged design on the sword

So in general, how heavy is the Katana?

Around 1kg

I thought it was heavier

Well, 2kg is too heavy to carry

What about that long one? -That may be around 2kg

Maybe that one is around 1.8kg

You need muscles

When you shed light on it, well normally they say the wave design is the part it turns white

but the wave design on the Katana is when you shed light, it comes out

The white part is what the katana polisher adds on like a makeup

It's like an eyeshadow. Whether you make the white area to be wide or narrow

The thickness will change the look. It's a design

To align that is the job of the polisher

For us, the part which comes out is the original wave design

Shedding light means looking at the bare face of a women without makeup. Looking at the katana's bare face

What is so special about being a sword-smith?

As a sword-smith, putting my passion on to the sword is what makes it special

A type of expression

What are things you consider when you make a sword?

Basically it is a job not to give in

Well, it's craftsmanship so passion makes what it makes. So I guess the passion is important

Do you get injured?

When you start out, you get burns and a lot of blisters

And you don't know when the master will tell you to stop

so you have to continue until they say so?

Interaction with the customer is important? -Yes

Having conversation with the customer is ideal to making what they want to make

Since I want to make with passion, I want it to be a sword which will be loved and used by the owner for many years

To think that way and creating the sword is what I believe and is how I make the sword

The person who orders the sword may have different feelings

and through conversation, do those feelings match with yours?

It is necessary for the feelings to match

And ofcourse the Japanese culture has always continued on with Katana

When you are born, you receive the sword as protection

When you turn 15 or become an adult, you receive a sword as to have responsibility to own a weapon

For women, they were given Katana as a protection

When you die, you place a sword to ward off evil

We have that culture

Katana appears many times in old proverbs as something which comes with our lives

That is why I have my own responsibility of creating a sword and that's what I do

They are made to last for a lifetime so

I want them be treated with respect

Not just the person, but when they are passed to the next generation, I'd be happy as well

I hope I can create a sword like that

Last question is, what is your philosophy?

Philosophy is such a hard word so if I would put into a few words,

but not to give in, and to create by what I believe in is what I can say

Thank you very much