#03. Kamiizumi Nobutsuna — 上泉信綱 · Founder of the Shinkage-ryu (新陰流)
Contents
- Lifespan: c. 1508~1578 (around age 70)
- Era: Mid-Sengoku
- School: Shinkage-ryu (新陰流) — see schools listed in co
- Aliases: Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami (伊勢守) · also called the Sword Saint (劍聖)
#Fiction Intro — "The First Experiment of the Life-Giving Sword"
One autumn in 1560. A riverbank in Kozuke Province (上野国).
Two men face each other. One is a mad swordsman — a man who cut down people in the village. The other is Kamiizumi.
The villagers watch from afar, holding their breath. Someone cries out.
"Cut off that man's head!"
Kamiizumi does not answer. What he holds is a wooden sword. Not a real blade.
The mad swordsman charges. Kamiizumi moves once. The wooden sword strikes the swordsman's wrist. The sword falls into the river. Once more the wooden sword lightly taps his temple. The swordsman collapses — he is not dead. He has merely lost consciousness.
Kamiizumi speaks quietly.
"To cut down a person is easy. It is the sword that lets a person live that is hard."
This is said to have been the first demonstration of the Life-Giving Sword (活人劍).
#Scent — A Life in History
#Life
Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Nobutsuna — born around 1508 into a warrior family of Kozuke Province (present-day Gunma Prefecture). In his youth he ranged across several schools — the Kashima Shinto-ryu (the Matsumoto Bizen-no-kami line), the Kage-ryu (陰流) of Aisu Iko, and others.
What he learned especially from Aisu Iko was decisive. Iko was one of the direct disciples of the Choisai line. Adding his own insight to it, he founded the Shinkage-ryu (新陰流). The name means "the new school of Kage (陰)."
"The Life-Giving Sword (活人劍)" — his own distinctive philosophy. "The sword is for letting people live, not for killing them." To read the opponent's intent to kill and neutralize it is the essence of the Shinkage-ryu.
Famous among his disciples:
- Yagyu Muneyoshi (柳生宗厳) — founded the Yagyu Shinkage-ryu (Chapter 4 of this volume).
- Marume Kurando (丸目長恵) — founded the Taisha-ryu.
- Okuyama Kyugasai (奥山休賀斎) — founded the Okuyama Shinkage-ryu. Master to Tokugawa Ieyasu.
- Hikita Bungoro (疋田文五郎) — founded the Hikita Kage-ryu.
These four are called the Four Heavenly Kings of the Shinkage-ryu.
#The Real Story
"The Duel at the Odawara Castle Gate" — around 1565. Before the main castle of the Hojo house, Kamiizumi fought a chain of duels with the Hojo side's swordsmen. A string of victories. The news spread across the Sengoku.
"Presenting the Sword to Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru" — Yoshiteru had been Bokuden's disciple, but on hearing Kamiizumi's name he summoned him and requested a demonstration. With three strokes of a wooden sword, Kamiizumi neutralized Yoshiteru's stance three times. Greatly impressed, Yoshiteru bestowed the title "Foremost Sword Under Heaven (天下第一劍)."
Late years: He went around the dojos of the Sengoku, taking in disciples. He died at around age 70 — there is no precise record.
#Tales
"The Birth of the Life-Giving Sword" — the same anecdote as the fiction above. The story of Kamiizumi subduing a madman with a wooden sword alone is the founding legend of the Shinkage-ryu.
"His disciple's disciple's disciple" — through the Yagyu house, the Shinkage-ryu carried on into the shogunal mastership of the Edo bakufu. That is, his technique was transmitted all the way to Tokugawa Ieyasu's grandson. This is his greatest legacy.
"Mahoujin Reincarnation crossover": In co-09-10, he is transformed into a Tatarigami. This volume is the historical original.
#Law — Lord-Grade Data
#School
Shinkage-ryu (新陰流) — listed in co.
- Licensed:
[Kata] No-Sword (無刀)— disarm + immediate attack. - Secret art:
[Kata] Life-Giving Sword (活人劍)— non-lethal combat (loss of will to fight).
#Lord-Grade Sheet
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Class | Ronin 9-dan (non-lethal swordmaster · founder of the Shinkage-ryu) |
| Attributes | Courage 2 · Finesse 3 · Physique 2 · Wisdom 1 · Presence 0 · Fate 0 |
| Energy | 13 |
| Wounds | 5 (3 + Physique 2) |
| Defense | Unarmored 10 / Armored 12 (Do-maru possible, but no armor by default) |
| Swordsmanship proficiency | +3 (Master) |
| Skills | Swordsmanship · Unarmed Combat · Negotiation |
| Key feats | Wind Blade · Master of Disengagement · Vital Point Insight · Master of Evasion |
| Three Ways and Six Hearts | 慈 (Way of Compassion) + 眞 (Way of Truth) |
#Unique Techniques
| Technique | Energy | Check | Effect | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Aptitude] Formless Stance (無形の構え) | 0 (constant) | — | Kamiizumi does not reveal his stance. On the first round of combat, the first attack check against him is -2. | 1 time per combat |
| [Kata] Killing-Intent Nullification (殺意無効) | 3 | 2d10+Finesse+Swordsmanship+2 >= Defense | On success, instead of Wound damage, disarm + loss of will to fight (cannot act on the next round). It deals no damage to an opponent who has cast off their killing intent. | 1 time per round |
#Fighting the Swordmaster
#Matchup
- One with killing intent: vulnerable to his
Killing-Intent Nullification. The fight itself does not come together. - One without killing intent: a subject for negotiation. He, too, fundamentally does not want a fight.
- Try to "kill" him and there is a question: "Why did you bring forth killing intent?"
#Three Paths to Victory
#Path 1 — Head-on Duel (recommendation ★)
- Simultaneous attack by several people is needed. Without killing intent.
- Irony: attacking without killing intent neutralizes his
Killing-Intent Nullification. If it is "an attack to capture," an even contest is possible.
#Path 2 — Earning Recognition (recommendation ★★★)
- Lower your sword before his wooden sword. A voluntary disarming. He sees the PC as a candidate for a new disciple.
- Even if you cannot win, you gain his teaching. The most recommended path.
#Path 3 — Bypass (recommendation ★)
- Indirect approach through his disciples (especially Yagyu Muneyoshi).
- If you meet him as one who has taken a contract for murder — he will flee. He refuses to kill.
#Taking the Swordmaster as Your Master
#Approach
Because he is touring the Sengoku, to meet him you must first grasp his route of relocation. Mainly the Kozuke · Odawara · Kyoto area.
#Conditions
- 慈 (Compassion) or 眞 (Truth) Three Ways and Six Hearts is required. 魔 (Demon) is absolutely refused.
- One who resonates with the philosophy of "the sword that gives life."
- A PC with many records of killing takes long to reach full licensure.
#Course of Study
- Year 1: Training in which not a single drop of blood is shed. Wooden sword only.
- Years 2~4: Transmission of the
Formless Stance. - Years 5~7: Transmission of
No-Swordand theLife-Giving Sword. - Full licensure: 5~8 years.
#Rewards
- Transmission of the Shinkage-ryu: At full licensure,
No-Sword. Thereafter, if you reach Master of swordsmanship, theLife-Giving Sword. - Transmission of the unique feat
Formless Stanceis possible (to a select few). - The title "disciple of Kamiizumi" — recognized throughout the realm.
- The honor of being named one of the Four Heavenly Kings (very rare beyond the four of history).
#GM Notes
Kamiizumi is the "swordmaster who does not kill." His appearance forces a moral choice on the PCs. A PC who meets him cannot escape the question, "What is the sword for?"
Scenario hooks:
- A madman / a cult group descends on a village → if Kamiizumi had come, what would he do?
- He appears as the master of Yagyu Muneyoshi. If a PC seeks out Yagyu, they may meet his master.
- Preparation for an encounter with the Tatarigami version of
co-09-10Mahoujin Reincarnation — the historical original moves "so that such a thing does not happen."
"To draw the sword is easy. To put the drawn sword back is hard." — Kamiizumi Nobutsuna