One Piece anime katanas recreated as exquisite letter openers by Japan’s swordsmith legacy heirs

Slice through your paper foes like Zoro and Law would.

If you’re going stick One Piece into the box of a single genre, the hit anime/manga is a pirate story. But creator Eiichiro Oda has always crafted the series aesthetics to be whatever he thinks is cool, and so swordsman and Straw Hat Pirate Roronoa Zoro doesn’t fight with a cutlass, rapier, or any other standard buccaneer blade, but rather a trio of Japanese-style katana.

All of Zoro’s katana were created by master swordsmiths in the One Piece world, and those craftsmen’s present-day, real-life counterparts are the cutlery makers of Seki, a town in Japan’s Gifu Prefecture which in generations past was a major supplier of steel to samurai warriors. Seki has now branched out into bladed instruments for less violent purposes, such as cooking knives, shaving razors, and letter openers, which brings us to a tie-up between Seki-based Nikken Cutlery
and One Piece.

Nikken has recreated Zoro’s three swords, starting with the Wado Ichimonji, the earliest katana the character is seen carrying.

Each of the One Piece letter openers is made of stainless steel for an authentic and weight feel. They’re officially classified by Nikken as “paper knives,” and promise to open envelopes with a satisfying slice. The included display stands are two-tiered, allowing you to keep the swords sheathed or place the scabbard on a different level of the rack so that you can admire the naked blade as well.

In the course of his adventures, Zoro goes on to acquire the Sandai Kitetsu, which has a uniquely irregular hamon hardening line.

▼ Unlike the in-anime Sandai Kitetsu, Nikken Cutlery’s version isn’t cursed.

Rounding out Zoro’s trio of weapons is the ominous-looking Shusui, with its jet-black blade contrasting with a fiery hamon.

And finally, if you’re a fan of One Piece’s other katana expert, Trafalgar Law, Nikken’s artisans have also produced a paper knife of his Kikoku.

Nikken Cutlery has previously offered curved katana-style scissors based on the personal weaponry of historical samurai, but this is the company’s first anime crossover. Each letter opener is priced at 4,000 yen (US$36) and can be ordered here directly from Nikken Cutlery.

Source: Nikken Cutlery via Japaaan
Images: Nikken Cutlery

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Japanese VR game lets you live the wonderful fantasy of getting poked in the chest by a cute girl

New game saves you the awkwardness of having to ask a real girl, “Hey, would you mind poking me in the chest?”

As the most immersive form of electronic entertainment we have today, virtual reality can let you do some amazing things, like take to the skies to protect Tokyo from a rampaging Godzilla or go on a gallant quest in the fantasy landscape of the Dragon Quest franchise. Now Tokyo-based VR developer IVR is set to give gamers a detailed simulation of another thrilling experience: getting poked in the chest by a cute girl!

On August 1, the company will be releasing Tsun Tsun VR through Steam. Tsun tsun is the Japanese onomatopoeia for poking or spikiness, and just like the title promises, Tsun Tsun VR’s selling point is that is allows you to feel an anime girl’s slender yet firm fingertips stabbing you in the torso, by means of a tactile feedback vest that you wear while playing it.

IVR proudly describes Tsun Tsun VR with:

“The world of Ready Player One has come true! In this game, you can experience having a girl poke your body. Through the experience of actually being touched by a VR girl, we have given birth to an unprecedented sense of immersion.”

▼ We must have missed the part of Ready Player One where the heroes stop their treasure hunt to get poked by anime girls.

VR titles tend to occupy differing points along a scale between “game” and “experience,” and Tsun Tsun VR seems closer to the latter, since getting poked in the chest by pink-tressed Koino Katsiki seems to make up the bulk of the content, with some occasional hugging being the only other gameplay wrinkle.

▼ Given the scary look in her eyes, though, we’re not sure how gentle her embrace is.

In the future, IVR plans to add a feature by which players can swap in different avatars for Koino as well as increase the number of supported feedback devices, including shirts that can provide feedback to the arms (currently the game, which can be found on Steam here, is only playable with the Tactot vest, manufactured by bHaptics). Who knows? Maybe if the response is strong enough, IVR will team up with the makers of Japan’s interactive talking anime girl huggy pillow, unless they think the cushion’s softness would destroy the illusion of getting firmly poked in the chest.

Source: Steam via IT Media
Images: Steam

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How you can help victims of Japan’s massive flood and earthquake by enjoying delicious Kit Kats

This one of the best-tasting Kit Kat flavors out of Japan’s many exclusives, and it’s aiding the recovery of disaster-stricken Osaka and West Japan.

Due to the nation’s tectonic position and regional weather patterns, earthquakes and typhoons are a part of life in Japan. We’ve been reminded of that in tragic fashion twice this summer, with Osaka being shaken by the prefecture’s strongest-ever-recorded earthquake in June, followed by storms and flooding taking lives and destroying infrastructure in West Japan in July.

Way over on the far other end of the spectrum of inevitabilities of life in Japan are, of course, the bounty of exclusive local Kit Kat flavors the country is blessed with, and now the chocolate-covered wafers are set to help with the recovery of the areas that have been hit by this summer’s natural disasters. Nestlé Japan has announced that it will be selling a special Kit Kat flavor, usually sold only in the Hiroshima area, nationwide in order to help raise funds to be donated to relief programs in Osaka and West Japan.

Sweetening the deal is the fact that the flavor, Momiji Manju, combines one of Japan’s most delicious traditional sweets with the widely loved Kit Kat format. Covered in white chocolate and with powdered sweet anko beans sandwiched between the wafers, the Momiji Manju Kit Kats recreate the iconic maple leaf-shaped (momiji being the Japanese word for “maple”) bite-size cake dumplings that have been a favorite of travelers to Hiroshima for more than a century.

The earthquake/flood relief Kit Kat Mini Momiji Manju (box pictured above) contains three individually wrapped Kit Kats, is priced at 160 yen (US$1.40), and goes on sale October 9 at supermarkets and convenience stores across Japan. It follows Nestlé Japan’s previous charity Kit Kats for victims of this spring’s Kumamoto earthquake and 2017 north Japan typhoon, showing once again that helping those in need isn’t just kind, but sweet too.

Source: Nestlé, PR Times via IT Media
Top image: Nestlé

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Sailor Moon yukata kimono line will keep you breezy and beautiful in the Japanese summer heat

As the temperatures climb, there’s just one team of glamorous superheroines who can save us from the summer heat. Moon Crystal Power Dress Up!

With the recent heatwave still simmering our skin (and our schools), we’ve turned to all manner of methods to beat the heat. From topsy-turvy popsicles to salt tablets and cooling pads, Japan is constantly on the cutting edge of chill technology. But back in the day, though, there was a more traditional way to keep things cool: your mode of dress!

We’ve been excited since the announcement for the beautiful Sailor Moon collaboration line by kimono maker Kyoto Marubeni, featuring rustic patterns in Sailor Senshi jewel tones. Now it’s summertime, and it’s the perfect time to show off that light, breathable cotton and head out to watch some fireworks! First in the line-up is the relatively affordable yukata set, featuring six different designs of yukata. Each set, retailing at 18,144 yen including tax (US$160) comes with the yukata itself and a gorgeous embroidered obi sash.

▼ Here is the Jupiter print, fresh and crisp in springtime greens and pinks.

▼ Each yukata comes with a complementary obi featuring an embroidered image of Luna the cat.

▼ The Mercury and Mars yukata prints provide a lovely contrast in vermillion and aqua

▼ Venus’ yukata features an attractive lavender and periwinkle color scheme

▼ And since she’s the star of the show, Sailor Moon also gets a second yukata pattern.

If you’re willing to splash out some extra cash, the following more mature prints might be up your alley. With designs from Silver Crystal (in pink or yellow ) to Uranus and Neptune to Five Sailor Scouts (deep blue or monochrome) to Moon Castle (pink or off-white) you’re destined to find a pattern that fits your pretty guardian needs. Each of these yukata comes on its own without a sash, and costs 41,040 yen.

Don’t worry, though – matching half-width sashes can be purchased to the tune of 16,200 yen and they come in stylish color pairs of red/black, yellow/purple, light blue/wine and pink/white.

If you’re hesitant about dropping a cool 57,000 yen on one outfit, there’s about always the more economical option to stave off the summer: a simple, elegant hand fan. The fans cost 4,104 yen each and sport the luxurious prints seen in the individual yukata sets for each Sailor Scout.

While the yukata are listed as “large free size”, the measurements themselves are more stringent: the kimono spans about 165 centimetres (64.9 inches), meaning the manufacturers recommend it for fashionistas between the height of 155-170cms (61 to 69 inches). Sadly, this would mean almost all of the Sailor Scouts themselves would be out of luck at their relative sizes… But maybe Tuxedo Mask might be able to just about fit into one if he really needed to cool down.

Source: Kyoto Marubeni, Wafukan Ichi
Top image: Wakufan Ichi
Insert images: Wafukan Ichi (1, 2, 3,)

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Aspiring Canadian cosplayer living in Tokyo arrested for immigration fraud sham marriage

Approached Japanese man she met at cosplay event and offered to pay him to be her husband for visa purposes.

In 2012, Canadian citizen Shannon Wong came to Japan on a four-year student visa. But while that may sound like a long time, anyone who’s fallen in love with life in Japan will tell you it’s not nearly long enough to experience all that the country has to offer, and Wong wanted to keep living the dream of residing in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward while pursuing her interests in cosplay and Lolita fashion.

With her student visa winding down, though, it was looking like Wong would have to head back to Canada, until she met Narimichi Sasaki, a Japanese construction worker eight years older than her and living in Tokyo’s Nerima Ward. The two became acquainted at a cosplay event held in Shinjuku’s Kabukicho district, and Wong later approached Sasaki with a preposition. She would provide him with 700,000 yen (US$6,300) upfront and an additional 30,000 yen a month, and he would become her on-paper husband.

Sasaki agreed, and on June 17, 2016, the pair turned in their marriage paperwork at a ward office in Yokohama, two cities south from Tokyo. However, this February immigration officers in Tokyo began an investigation into the pair, uncovering the fraudulent arrangement and determining that the pair had not been cohabiting or otherwise living as husband and wife.

On July 11, officers from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s arrested Wong and Sasaki, now 29 and 37 years old, respectively. No longer a student, Wong’s employment has been reported as both “restaurant worker” and “fuzoku worker,” the latter referring to the adult-oriented service sector, including jobs ranging from bar hostess to topless dancer and erotic masseuse.

▼ Wong in custody

日本でコスプレしたくて偽装結婚　カナダ人の女逮捕 日本でコスプレをしたいと、コスプレ会場で知り合った男に偽装結婚を持ちかけた疑いで、カナダ国籍の女が警視庁に逮捕された。 fnn.jp/posts/00397630… #FNN https://t.co/ishDkT1WaG

—
Fuji News Network (@FNN_News) July 31, 2018

Wong has admitted to the charges, and given Japan’s customary hardline stance on immigration fraud, is unlikely to secure a visa which would allow her to continue living in the country.

Sources: Livedoor News/Jiji Tsushin, FNN via Otakomu
Top image: Pakutaso

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