Zabuza Momochi is one of the first strong adversaries appearing at the beginning chapters of Naruto. Zabuza was once a member of the Kirigakure's Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, a group of shinobi who wield exceptionally large swords. The swords are passed down from one generation to another. Zabuza's sword is called Kubikiri Hocho which translates to "Decapitating Knife".


After a failed coup to assassinate Kirigakure's leadership, Zabuza and his followers fled the village and began working as hired assassins. As a Kirigakure shinobi, he is well-skilled in water-jutsu and this was shown in the fight with Hatake Kakashi and company which marks one of the early pinnacle battles in Naruto. In the end Zabuza was defeated by Kakashi and this failure caused him his life when his employer decided to hire other assassins to take him out.

After his death, Zabuza's sword ended-up in the hands of Suigetsu Houzuki who is the brother of Mangetsu Houzuki (believed to be one of the Seven Swordsmen). Suigetsu later joined Uchiha Sasuke's Hawk group after Sasuke defeated Orochimaru.


Sometime before being introduced, Suigetsu trained to be one of Kirigakure's Seven Swordsmen of the Mist but failed. Suigetsu then begun his quest to collect all of the swords of the Seven Swordsmen for himself instead. To this end, he hopes to be able to take Hoshigaki Kisame's sword Samehada by working with Sasuke.


Zabuza fans will certainly want a life-size replica of Kubikiri Hocho which is a whopping huge sword to wield, not to mention the weight. Bad news is I couldn't find a steel replica of that size. Good news is the Stainless Steel Zabuza Momochi Sword replica from TopSwords which is a smaller 42" version of the sword. Overall I'd say it's a pretty marvelous looking piece especially the huge blade. The blade is made of 440 Stainless Steel with a width as wide as the guard. It features a hollow circle near the blade tip and partial hollow at the blade edge near the guard, similar to the design in the anime. The handle is made of metal and wrapped with leather. There are four exposed metal rings at the handle making the Zabuza Momochi Sword really eye-catching. A genuine leather sheath is also included with the sword replica.


If you're looking for Zabuza's costume, check out the site at AllAnimeDVD.com. They also have selections of other Naruto character costumes. Perfect for Halloween, birthdays, cosplay events and themed parties. Just take your pick.

I'm not a big fan of Tom Cruise but I sure seen a lot of his antiques in real life and had a few good laughs. I'm sure Oprah did too. The Last Samurai (2003) movie starring Mr. Cruise, tells the story of an American soldier Nathan Algren who initially fought against the samurai led by Lord Katsumoto, but in the end joined forces and fought alongside them during the Meiji Restoration era in 1876 and 1877. The movie is not a true story but it does contain historical elements from the 1877 Satsuma Rebellion led by Saigo Takamori and the story of Jules Brunet, a French army captain who fought alongside Enomoto Takeaki in a previous Boshin War.


Historically, the only recorded significant event of foreigners assuming active role in Japanese civil war is that of French military advisors under Jules Brunet and this was during the Boshin War, not the Satsuma Rebellion featured in the film. They joined forces favourable to the Shogun under Enomoto Takeaki. The Last Samurai also replaced the key French figures with American characters.


In the real Satsuma Rebellion, no Westerners were ever recorded to have fought on either side of the rebellion. The battle was also more one-sided than what was described in The Last Samurai. The event happened in 1877,10 years after the Boshin War, and 10 years after the Imperial Japanese Army was formed. The Imperial Army sent a massive force of 300,000 soldiers under Kawamura Sumiyoshi to the island of Kyushu to crush Saigo Takamori and his 40,000 strong troops. The Imperial soldiers were equipped with modern weaponries including howitzers and surveillance balloons. In reality all sides of the conflict in both Boshin War and Satsuma Rebellion, used modern equipment to some degree.

Although the character of Lord Katsumoto (played by Ken Watanabe) is based on Saigo Takamori, the last battle in the movie is not taken from his final stand against the Imperial Army. The scene was actually based on a different battle where a group of disgruntled retainers attacked the new Imperial Army without any firearms or western weapons and that event took place somewhere around the same time.


In the ending chapters of The Last Samurai, Nathan Algren (Tom Cruise) received a Japanese katana from the samurai. That katana has been reproduced by Musashi into an exact functional sword replica. The Musashi Handmade Full-Tang Last Samurai Movie Sword Replica from 247Swords has an overall length of 41", blade Length 28" and handle length 11". The fully-functional blade is made of 1060 high-carbon steel, hammered out to ensure the carbon is evenly distributed throughout the blade for a consistent hardness. A groove is added to the blade top to reduce the weight of the blade.


Inscribed on the Last Samurai Sword's blade is the Kanji "I belong to the warrior in whom the old ways have joined the new". The blade features a kissake (blade point), hamon (temper pattern) and comes with a sharpened edge. A full-tang construction is built into the movie sword. The habaki (blade collar) is a one piece brass construction with two copper seppa (washer/spacer). The actual tsuba (guard) is blackened iron with a pin-wheel design. Black cotton cord wraps the tsuka (handle) over a white ray skin and secures the kashira (pommel) made of oxidized copper. The tangs of the Last Samurai Movie Sword are secured by two bamboo mekugi (sword peg) while the menuki (hilt ornaments) are copper dragons on each sides of the handle. The saya (scabbard) is made of hard wood with a high-gloss black finish. The koiguchi (scabbard mouth) is bull horn while the sageo (cord) is a black cotton cord wrapped over the kurikata (loop for cord). This Last Samurai Movie Sword replica also comes with a free wooden display stand and a beautiful gift box decorated with yellow silk inlay.


If you prefer a decorative sword, the Stainless Steel Last Samurai Movie Sword Replica from TrueSwords is a nice alternative although it's not an exact replica. The sword has an overall length of 41.25" and the blade is made of 440 Stainless Steel. It does not feature a full-tang construction and the tsuba (guard) has a different design - a golden dragon figure encircling the solid guard. The handle is made of wood and the sword comes with a display stand inscribed "Bushido" in Japanese.

Just read this weird news on BBC: A teenager from Ayrshire who was caught posing with a sword on the social networking site Bebo has been fined £200 at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court. Anthony Bowman, 19, pleaded guilty to displaying the image on Bebo between January 2006 and July 2008. His case came to light after police conducted a trawl of the internet in a bid to cut crime and disorder. Read more on Court fine over Bebo sword image.

Kisuke Urahara's zanpakutou in sealed form is a shikomizue called Benihime which translates to "crimson princess". Shikomizue which literally means "prepared cane" is actually the name of the mounting where the sword blade is placed in, to conceal the fact that it is a sword and thus provide the element of surprise. In Urahara's case, it is a walking cane stick and I guess it reflects Urahara's mysterious and reserved personality.


This type of mounting was used commonly by shinobi (Ninja) in ancient days and made popular by the fictional blind swordmaster Zatoichi. The sheathe of Benihime also has the ability to dislodge a soul from the body.

To release Benihime's shikai form, Urahara uses the command "okiro" or "awaken". In shikai form, Benihime's blade is wider and the hilt end bends at an angle. Its slim guard runs parallel with the blade which is rare among all zanpakutou. There are two red silk tassels attached to the guard and pommel. A short chain is also hangs from the guard.


Benihime has two known special abilities activated by the command "nake" or "sing/cry". It creates a polygonal "blood-mist shield" which defends against most attacks and hurl a crimson energy blast similar to a cero. Urahara being a former captain of Gotei 13 has achieved bankai but it is yet to be revealed. Amazingly he achieved bankai in only three days. His previous comments suggest it's either insanely powerful or not an offensive type.


The Kisuke Urahara Benihime Sword replica from RoyalArm is a beautiful decorative sword with great attention to detail. The sword has an overall length of 47". The blade is made of 440 stainless steel and features a full-tang construction. Benihime Sword's guard and pommel have polished copper-like surface similar to the anime design. There were some replicas I came across on the net having gray-weathered black guard and pommel instead, and priced higher than RoyalArm's.


If there are no stocks available at RoyalArm which do happens occasionally due to sudden high demand, you can opt for the alternative Kisuke Urahara Benihime Sword replica from Collectible Cutlery.

If you're looking for Bleach costume, check out the site at AllAnimeDVD.com. They have several selections of Shinigami, Espada, Quincy and other Bleach costumes. Perfect for Halloween, birthdays, cosplay events and themed parties. Just take your pick.