#kitetsu

I've been working on a collab with @x-blackbutterfly-x for the @lemonlimeszbang ! I will be posting more art for it as new chapters go up so look forward to that too!

You can go read the first chapter of a cute modern AU Sanzo fic featuring Wado, Kitetsu and Enma as cats here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/81188266/chapters/213386821

Here's the summary:

Sanji is catering at a 5 star hotel, and comes across Zoro who has recently started working there as a security guard. Both disgruntled while on a break, they start talking. Sanji works as a pet sitter alongside his main job and offers to help Zoro with looking after his three cats, Wado, Kitetsu, and Enma. The more they get to know each other they come to realise that there may be more to explore between them than just friendship.

When Sukiyaki was in disguise he called himself "Hitetsu" 飛徹. He says his ancestor's name is "Kotetsu" 古徹. Both these names share the same -tetsu 徹 as Kitetsu 鬼徹.

Sukiyaki had said Kotetsu is his actual ancestor 先祖, not a "predecessor", so this means Kotetsu is also a Koudzuki and not just a previous generation master at the "Kitetsu school".

If we assume that Hitetsu and Kotetsu are some kind of "pen names" that they use when operating as swordsmiths (maybe to distance themselves from their position as part of the "shogunate lineage"?), it's possible then that "Kitetsu" is similarly the "pen name" of their ancestor even further back.

That said, I'm thinking of how back in Zou, we were told that the Koudzuki were sea stone craftsmen.

The swordsmith lineage was probably being kept secret back then for later plot, which especially makes sense now that we find out that Venus's sword is very likely the Shodai Kitetsu.

There are two possibilities here.

1) Maybe there are two branches of Koudzuki lineage, where one specialise in working the stones while the other are swordsmiths.

2) Maybe it's just one lineage doing both. At some point in the past, maybe the Kitetsu swords were made with sea stones, which accounted for their superior quality. Then maybe as time passes, the technique is lost or forgotten, and nobody makes sea stone swords anymore.

Also, I'm curious now about the "Ichimonji", since we know that Wadou Ichimonji was made by Shimotsuki Kouzaburou. Is there an "Ichimonji school" whose members are the Shimotsuki family?

The amount of spoilers I had to avoid this week because of this chapter... and I'm so happy I did. I have been waiting for a chapter like this, centred around Zoro where we see more of his past, and more of the swords for so long and Oda has delivered. Anyways, let's just,,, get into it but bear in mind it's too difficult to put into words what I felt reading this when all I wanted to do was scream--

The chapter title is 'Shimotsuki Kozaburo'

From the title alone we can guess what the chapter will be about, because Shimotsuki is the swordsmith who forged both Enma and Wado...

The chapter starts off where it cut off last time with Zoro vs King, and Enma is still draining Zoro's power...

He can't seem to gain control over it, and that gives him a disadvantage with King, who keeps his attacks coming one after one - whereas Zoro's attacks don't seem to faze him at all...

According to Queen, who at this point honestly should just narrate the show with the amount of talking he does, thanks for the info, Zoro doesn't stand a chance against King, who's a Lunarian and a monster who "could thrive in any inhospitable environment the world threw" at him. Meanwhile King is preparing an attack against Zoro, setting himself on fire again and before that - let's just take a moment to appreciate the parallels between Sanji vs Queen and Zoro vs King

Both amazing panels of the two wings of the pirate king.

Even Shishi Sonson, one of Zoro's most notorious attacks did absolutely nothing against King

Meanwhile Enma keeps draining Zoro's haki, and he can't seem to gain control over it. At this point Zoro is trying to control Enma, and evade King's attacks at the same time.

While trying to avoid King's attacks he drops his swords, and while collecting them-

which by the way is another ode to how important they are to Zoro, because even King says 'so you're risking your life to save the swords? have you lost it?'

-he reminisces about how he got all of them.

And then he thinks about an 'old geezer' who lived on his old village, Kuina's grandfather, and that's where he connects the dots that Enma and Wado's creator was none other than that person (which by the way, is hilarious. You're telling me Zoro heard all about Shimotsuki Kozubaro and the Shimotsuki clan but never once said, 'hold up, isn't my village called Shimotsuki Village?' but then again, of course he didn't.)

This chapter is one of my favorite chapters of Wano so far, because we got so much more lore for the swords and swordsmen in general, and much more into Zoro's character as well.

Before we dive into the more serious topics, let's just cry together over HOW ADORABLE BABY ZORO IS LOOK AT HIM I MISS HIM

Anyways, so Zoro is talking to this 'old geezer' who happens to be the forger of both Wado and Enma (of course, unknown to Zoro at the time) and Shimotsuki starts talking about swords, who are creating initially to 'cut down people' -

My favorite part about the whole conversation Shimotsuki had with Zoro, was when he was talking about the cursed swords in particular - there's no such thing. Swords "exist to cut people down" and a sword that does that, even without his 'master's' approval is just doing what it's supposed to do, only the weak believe that deadly swords are cursed.

Enma, the lord of the underworld, was testing Zoro. And he just didn't 'live up to it's standards'.

Zoro finally understands, Enma doesn't just drain your haki, if you learn to control it, it can flow Haki around it, and 'taming' Enma, or controlling it, is what helps Zoro coat his swords with his haki - but not just any Haki! The characters on the above panel who all passed out because of Zoro's power only elude to one thing - conquerors haki. Zoro's main power-up in this fight is conquerors coating.

The conqueror's haki is flowing out of Zoro, but he uses it to coat all three swords - and it is at this moment where we all knew... King is over with. It was nice while it lasted.

I mean, has a Zoro fight ever lasted long after he smiles like that? Plus the fact that he mentioned his dream, and Luffy along with Kuina (my oldest friend, tears on my face guys, tears).

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.

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No break next week, but I'm betting Oda is going to cut to another scene, seems like the appropriate place for him to focus on somebody else before coming back for the grand finale.

And like always...

Shusui, Wado, and Kitetsu human redesigns.

-

Who did it?! ...Which one?! Wado, Kitetsu, Shusui?

What's going on?!

Hello!

Kitetsu ( 鬼鉄 ) literally means demon iron. The manga mentions how the kitetsu swords are made from the iron sand that is left when an Oni dies. that iron sand is what they call kitetsu.