Ken no Yoso

The Nine Elemental Katana

The Ken no Yoso are the most powerful blades in the world, a set of nine elemental katanas forged in the Abral Islands, imbued with magical might beyond most of the greatest mages in the world.

The Nine Blades

Sakai Kyōko by Jarhed

The Ken no Yoso are each a katana, finely crafted with Dwarven and Kamejin craft techniques to be the greatest blades in the world even without the enchantments.
However, each blade also has an Elemental Affinity, in the same way that all creatures do. Many wonder how this was done, as the exact method was never publicized.
The truth is that people's souls were bound to the blades and their bodies were used in the forging of them, making the blades not just extensions of, but embodiments and remains of some of the most powerful mages of the era.
Due to this, it is said that even one of these blades, particularly Masamune, Muramasa, and Saemonzaburo (the three most powerful blades) can stop an army single-handedly when wielded by a skilled swordsman.
Even with an inept hand, they are dangerous tools, but those adept at their use can do almost anything with them, like a mage with no need to use their own mana, as the swords have mana of their own.
The blades are as follows:

• Masamune- The Light Blade


• Muramasa- The Dark Blade


• Kanemitsu- The Wind Blade


• Kaneuji- The Fire Blade


• Chogi- The Ice Blade


• Kinju- The Water Blade


• Kunishige- The Earth Blade


• Kunitsugu- The Lightning Blade


• Saemonzaburo- The Energy Blade

The Forging of the Nine Elemental Blades

For some time, Dwarven blacksmiths and Kamejin swordsmiths argued over who were truly the best at crafting weapons.
This all changed in the year -658, when Sakai Kyōko, a Kamejin swordsmith, found a Dwarven woman named Solnar in her workshop, holding one of her most prized blades.
At first, Kyōko tried to drive Solnar out, but Solnar was not harming the blade. Instead, she demanded to try it to test if it was at the level it appeared to be. Kyōko, happy to take on the challenge, agreed.
Solnar was impressed by the weapon, to put it lightly. She called it the finest blade she ever beheld, and begged to work with Kyōko. She even showed Kyoko her own weapons, which impressed her as well.
The two realized, however, that just making swords was not enough. So, they brought in the Soul Mage as well, who helped them to make enchanted blades. This mage, however, was not exactly a saint, and had an idea of how to make them more powerful.
Nine people were gathered, the most powerful mages of each of the eight affinities that the trio could find and then one Ace. Each was enchanted and bound into the metal that was then forged into a blade that was a combination of the Kamejin style and Dwarven method of creation.
Thus, the Ken no Yoso were created.

Famous Wielders

There have been many famous wielders of the Ken no Yoso, mostly from the Abral Islands, but there were some from across the globe that have come to prominence while wielding these elemental blades.

Nakagawa Yuichi by Jarhed

Sengoku Jidai

During the Sengoku Jidai, Zenkoku Akira wielded Muramasa, using it to conquer much of the Abral archipelago as one of the favorites to win the war.
Teiji Shin, another favorite to win the war, wielded Kaneuji at the height of his army's power, being a particularly formidable force.
Ikko Shushin was on the same level as the previous two and he was best known for wielding Masamune.
Meanwhile, the warrior Nakagawa Yuichi wielded Kinju, learning self-discipline while holding such a powerful blade, as he fought for his chosen clan of the Hatanakas. After his death, the blade was passed down from Emperor to Emperor in the Hatanaka family, honoring the swordsman for his deeds to the clan.

The World Court

Since before the founding of the World Court, when the Stallbourne Court of Mercy asked for a Kamejin representative, a Ken no Yoso has been in the possession of the judges of Stallbourne. It was given as a gift of good will to the Court, and has since remained in their possession.
This is Muramasa, the Dark Blade, one of the most powerful weapons. It is, however, forbidden from being wielded by anyone in the World Court that is not the Kamejin Judge Kappa or the next candidate to become Judge Kappa.
After becoming the World Court, the Judges wielded Muramasa and other enchanted weapons and items to enforce their justice and impose their will on the world.

The 500s

In the 500s, the Champion of Death, Miyake Miyako, wielded Kanemitsu, while her fellow Shinsengumi member, Admiral Ishihara Takeo, wielded Kaneuji.

Miyake Miyako by Jarhed

Chogi was passed around, first being wielded by Odrukh of the Jaded Executioners, then by the Devil that killed him, Chivalry. Both of these individuals were trained by Miyake Miyako, and she was at the very least proud to see Chivalry, the worse and younger of the two students, wielding it victorious, though she was disappointed in Odrukh for dying to such an opponent.
As for Kinju, it was stolen from the Hatanakas by the Merman Pirates, who used it to terrorize the seas for a short period of time before a group defeated them, with the Orc mage Zaud Foot Marauder stealing Kinju. When Zaud was killed during the Coup of Zephys, the blade was returned to the Hatanakas.
Many have claimed that the Merman Pirates were agents of the World Court that stole Kinju in an attempt to destabilize the Abral Empire, both upsetting the empire's culture and weakening the Emperor so that he would die during the Grand Crowning, where they attempted a simultaneous coup around the world. Hatanaka Saburo, however, beat back the World Court's forces without Kinju, partially thanks to the aid of those like Miyake Miyako and Ishihara Takeo.

The 800s

During the reign of Fri Ja Hatanaka, as well as his father Chiri and his brother Dakura, Kinju was not wielded by any of them. Each of the three Emperors refused to use a weapon like that, preferring martial arts and their fists. During this time, then, the blade was ceremonial, which is particularly impressive because of the fact that the Abral Empire expanded considerably during this period.

Imitations

There have been attempts at imitation blades, weapons crafted in the same fashion as the Ken no Yoso, but usually without the same craftsmanship or with different methods.

Odrukh of the Jaded Executioners by andreaspsillos4

Saijō Ō Wazamono

The Supreme Grade Swords, these were the first attempt at a second batch of elemental blades, crafted in the -300s. There was no successful attempt to make another Saemonzaburo, and it was deemed impossible, as no one could even get their hands on Saemonzaburo to attempt to study it.
They are not as powerful as the Ken no Yoso, but are still considerably dangerous weapons not to be underestimated under any circumstance.

• Osafune Hidemitsu- A Fire Sword


• Nagasone Okimasa- A Dark Sword


• Nagasone Okisato- A Light Sword


• Seikan Kanemoto- A Water Sword


• Magoroku Kanemoto- An Ice Sword


• Sukehiro- A Lightning Sword


• Tadayoshi- A Wind Sword


• Mihara Masaie- An Earth Sword

Ō Wazamono

The Excellent Grade Swords, these were the attempt after the Saijō Ō Wazamono, and again something was lost to time and the process did not produce the same result. Some attribute it to failure of the craftsmen, while others say it was a different method.
This time, the light blade and the energy blade were not carried over. In all further incarnations, another elemental blade would be lost, losing a part of the set with the new creations.

• Horikawa Kuniyasu- A Dark Sword


• Kashu Kanekawa I- A Fire Sword


• Mondonoshō Masakiyo- A Water Sword


• Izumi no Kami Kunisada I- An Ice Sword


• Tsuda Sukehiro- An Earth Sword


• Tatara Nagayuki- A Lightning Sword


• Osafune Yoshikage- An Air Sword

Ogonn Ha by RovaRed

Ryō Wazamono and Wazamono

The Very Good and Good Grade Swords, these blades were of little note. They had enchantments, but they were hardly of any considerable power.
The Ryō Wazamono had no dark blade nor lightning blade, and following that the Wazamono did not have an Ice Blade, only Fire, Water, Earth, and Air. They were considered pitiful weapons.

Herri, the Beast Blade

In the mid 400s, General Thargrun of the Green Ghosts squad of the Dwarven Army began to wield a new weapon, one that was modeled after his idea of the Ken no Yoso, but instead of grafting people and their affinities into the weapon, he imbued his sword with a creature and its might.
This weapon, dubbed the Beast Blade, was said to be able to eat at anything it touched, feared by many around the world. However, in truth the Beast Blade was just Thargrun's dear, departed dog Herri, who he did not wish to part with, so he made him live forever as a weapon.
When Ogonn Ha killed Thargrun, he took Herri for himself, but eventually let the Beast Blade go into the sea, where it would float until eventually it was found again.