Kage to Hitari is a legendary sword from Shinri blessed by both Yamma-Sama, spirit of light and motherhood, and Emma-sama, spirit of darkness and calamity. Because of this strange creation the blade is both a weapon of life and death, capable of healing those it touches or inflicting incurable wounds. Due to this weapon’s great power it is said that whoever bears it will be the strongest warrior in all of Shinri, a reputation it rightfully earned since many of the land’s greatest legends such as Ryo Tamaekachi, Nejiro Norowa and Shizen Shi are counted among its bearers.
The origins of this sword go back to the times of the Great Spirit War where humans and spirits clashed over the control of the Shinri lands. While the conflict was seen by many as black and white, both sides were not homogenous as members of both races would be found on either side. In those days Emma-Sama and Yamma-Sama chose to aid the humans and granted their blessings to a great warrior named Fuku Sareta, who would quickly rise to greatness and become a powerful feudal lord. Because of his feats his blade was blessed by both spirits, becoming the great sword Kage To Hitari.
In a tragic twist of fate that would repeat multiple times to the many bearers of this blade lord Sareta was murdered by one of his loyal generals from the Tamaekachi clan. The exact motivations that drove him to such an act are still unclear, with Tamaekachi clan histories claiming that the sword drove lord Sareta insane and they had to stop it while Seishin-Gumi records claim that he did it out of desire for such a valuable weapon. Whatever the cause this act made Emma-Sama punish lord Tamaekachi and all his descendants with a hideous curse which sentenced them to an early death and made their hair turn white, forever marking them as hated by the spirits. In an ironic twist of fate only the bearer of the sword would be immune to this curse, pitting brother against brother and father against sons and all fought to claim the blade that could free them from this curse of death.
While the sword has belonged to many great heroes and villains from the Tamaekachi clan one of its most renowned bearers would be Ryo Tamekachi, the greatest swordswoman of her time who would enter legend as the Cursed Dragon. In her times the clan had divided into three feuding branches from the fallout of a war for control of the sword and she was born into the least of the three, facing a harsh life and bearing the hatred of her relatives. Already talented from an early age, she caught the eye of a swordsman from the main family and the two would eventually fall in love, starting a secret relationship and desiring to unite the clan once again. With the help of her lover’s brother the three staged a coup inside the clan and she would claim the sword from the clan patriarch after defeating him in a duel.
Ryo and her lover married after the war and she would later bear a son she named Akiro. While their life was now a happy one she feared her son would die young and prayed relentlessly to Yamma-Sama, begging her for forgiveness from the curse and a chance he could live. For reasons only fate knows the spirit of motherhood chose to listen to her prayers and cured young Akiro from his curse, granting him the chance to live a fulfilling life. As he grew up Akiro showed great potential to even surpass his mother and the clan entered an era of prosperity.
As they rejoiced Emma-Sama waited patiently for an opportunity to cause more suffering to her mortal enemies, a chance that would happen once a travelling swordsman named Nejiro Norowa entered her domain in search for a cure of an ancient curse afflicting his apprentice. Nejiro tried to challenge her in a duel for the chance of gaining the cure and after he lost miserably the dark spirit bestowed the Ashura curse on him and told him the only way to cure it was with Kage to Hitari, the blade that could cure all curses. Desperate for a way out, Nejiro travelled to the Tamaekachi lands to try to borrow the sword but after Ryo refused his initial offer the Ashura curse drove him mad and he savagely attacked the Tamekachi clan.
Ryo faced him in a duel and while she gave it all to fight him it was not enough and the Cursed Dragon perished at the hands of Nejiro. The swordsman claimed the blade and as promised he was healed from the curse, but in his madness he murdered nearly the entire Tamaekachi clan, an action that filled him with immesurable guilt. When he found Akiro hiding in the forest, the sole survivor of the massacre, he took him in as his apprentice hiding the truth that he was responsible for the deaths of his loved ones.
Now the owner of the most infamous sword in all Shinri, Nejiro travelled the land in search of even greater challenges and taught swordfighing to his young apprentice, who followed him everywhere he went and ended up involved in his many adventures. Once he felt Akiro was strong enough to face the world Nejiro abandoned him one day with the parting words to seek him out once he was strong enough to defeat him. The reasons why he did that were in part because he wanted Akiro to defeat him someday and claim the sword and in part because he didn’t want his apprentice to be recruited into the Seishin-Gumi, the group he served, preferring him to be free so he could fulfill his dreams.
With the sword Nejiro was now the strongest warrior in all Shinri and used this talent to fight many powerful spirits that threatened the land. Always in search for a greater challenge, he took the Seishin-Gumi’s deadliest missions just for the thrill of it. At some point he met and fought Yabu, but even he could not face such a strong foe and he learnt to his delight that there were still stronger people than himself in the world. His path would cross with Akiro once again when the Seishin-Gumi ordered him to assassinate the Incarnate’s companions, a group his former apprentice now belonged to. In their first encounter he displayed the sword’s full power but chose to let his foes escape, hoping to motivate Akiro to grow even stronger.
When he would cross paths with the Incarnate’s companions once again they had become much stronger and were a true challenge to him, forcing Nejiro to give it all. But his overconfidence would be his downfall, as he didn’t use lethal force until it was too late and his opponents masterfully coordinated their attacks to gain victory. While they chose to spare his life, the sword did not end up in the hands of Akiro but his companion Shizen, an ambitious kitsune who wanted to become the strongest warrior in all Shinri.
With the sword in his hands Shizen Shi was one step closer to becoming Shinri’s strongest warrior. Thanks to the sword he could face Kenamaru, lord of the Seishin-Gumi, in combat and together with his companions they took him down, eliminating Shinri’s most powerful secret organization. After their victory Akiro claimed he deserved the sword since his master always intended to give it to him and it rightfully belonged to his clan, but Shizen refused, claiming it was now his and according to the Seishin-Gumi records it was stolen by the Tamaekachi clan in the first place.
This bitter dispute would culminate in a duel, which took place in Klonum during festivities which celebrated Shinri’s unification under Incarnate Seigo. While Akiro trained hard and tried his best he was no match to Shizen’s cunning, who managed to overpower his foe without even taking a single hit. Even though Shizen is the victor for now, the sword’s long history of bloodshed and tragedy shows that nothing is certain and tragedy always will follow its bearer.
The sword Kage to Hitari is truly a powerful weapon, known for being nearly unbreakable and capable of easily slicing through armor. Its key trait is the ability to shift between two forms, one where its blade glows with holy light and another which abosrbs the light around it, representing the two spirits who blessed it. In its light form the sword can emit bursts of bright light and greatly improve the regenerative abilities of its bearer along with healing those it touches. In contrast, if the sword is in dark form the wounds it inflicts are harded to heal and the blade’s bearer can heal their wounds by spilling the blood of their enemies and inflict hideous curses on them.
Another one of the blade’s traits is that it will only accept those who have defeated its former master in a duel and have both light and darkness in their hearts, refusing to use most of its abilities for those it considers unworthy. Once its bearer gains the sword’s trust it will move on its own accord as if it were alive, granting a great advantage in battle.