Kitetsu

Kitetsu
Statistics
Japanese Name:	鬼徹 (鬼徹一派)
Romanized Name:	Kitetsu (Kitetsu Ippa)
Official English Name:	Kitetsu
First Appearance:	Chapter 97; Episode 49 (mentioned)
Affiliation:	Wano Country
Occupation:	Crafting swords

For other uses of this name, see Kitetsu (Disambiguation).

The swords of the "Kitetsu School" (鬼徹一派, Kitetsu Ippa^?) are a series of katana blades that have been crafted by infamous swordsmiths from Wano Country.

Known Work

The Kitetsu swordsmiths, through their superior craftsmanship, have forged some of the finest swords in the world, counting as Meito. Each of their blades are labeled as "cursed blades" (妖刀, yōtō^?, lit. "mystic/demonic blades") and are said to eventually kill their wielder. Because of this, it was said that no one would use any Kitetsu sword in recent times. Some people were even paranoid that if someone would sell a Kitetsu sword and the curse killed the new wielder, it would come back to the seller. However, a person's luck can overcome the blade's curse, a fact that is considered extremely rare to see. As demonstrated by Roronoa Zoro, his luck overcame the blade's curse. The shopkeeper was so impressed that he gave his family's heirloom to Zoro for free.

The different Kitetsu swords were made by different generations of swordsmiths.^{[citation needed]} With every generation, the swords seemingly became weaker (and thus a Grade lower) than their predecessors:

• Shodai Kitetsu (a Supreme Grade sword)
• Nidai Kitetsu (a Great Grade sword crafted by Kotetsu)
• Sandai Kitetsu (a Grade sword crafted by Kouzuki Sukiyaki)
• As confirmed by Zoro, the katana that Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro wields is of the Kitetsu line, with the hilt and the rounded cross pattée tsuba resembling those of the Nidai Kitetsu and Sandai Kitetsu. The katana's name and generation (and if, perhaps, it is the Shodai) have not yet been confirmed.

Trivia

• Kitetsu (鬼徹^?) literally means "Demon/Ogre/Oni Piercer".
• The Kitetsu blades are likely inspired by the Kotetsu (虎徹^?, lit. "Tiger Piercer") swordsmiths of Edo-period Japan, two of which are counted among the real-world Wazamono classification of swordsmiths. To be specific, ranked among the 12 Saijō Ōwazamono are Nagasone Kotetsu, born Nagasone Okisato and nicknamed Kotetsu I (初代虎徹, Shodai Kotetsu^?) as well as his adopted son Nagasone Okimasa, nicknamed Kotetsu II (二代虎徹, Nidai Kotetsu^?); their swords all bear the "Kotetsu" name.
• The Kitetsu swords could likewise be a reference to Sengo Muramasa, a famous swordsmith of Muromachi-era Japan whose swords, in folklore and popular culture from the 18th century on, have all been said to be "cursed blades" (妖刀, yōtō^?) that hunger for blood, inciting their warrior to commit murder or suicide.
• All Kitetsu blades seen so far have the same tsuba: shaped like a rounded-out cross pattée.