Gyakufunsha Kata

is a Kenjutsu Fighting Style which Kusanagi utilizes.

Overview
Kusanagi, being the reincarnation of the legendary and deific Yakedo Itonami, he is also an individual who is regarded as the embodiment of Kenjutsu. All though Kusanagi has not had as long as his previous incarnation to train in the art, Kusanagi is regarded to have met and even surpassed the natural skill of Yakedo’s Kenjutsu. Kusanagi follows a multitude of forms when it comes to Kenjutsu, and like his first incarnation, uses a variety of combination styles, as well as his own style of Kenjutsu. The style of which Kusanagi has made his own is called, a name which Kusanagi has recognized as his own. Kusanagi has been able to learn these multiple form through the training given to him by his previous incarnation, and utilizes the combinations for certain events.

As the name of Kusanagi’s swordplay implies, the slashes usually spawned by Kusanagi’s blades are performed in a ‘reversed’ fashion, and Kusanagi follows a certain ideology when it comes to his Kenjutsu. Kusanagi states he follows the ‘Flowing Belief’, an ancient ideology of the bladed art, similar to his previous incarnation. The belief dictates that the blade is an extension of one’s self, and evolves over time, and should not be restricted to any given rhythm. This ideology is one not often followed by others, as Kusanagi and a few others are the only practitioners of this belief. The belief also states that a user should flow chakra into the blade, to produce a ‘reversed’ aura, and allows for smoother and hastier attacks. This unique and powerful belief often draws inspiration from utilizing the opponents Kenjutsu as well, and Kusanagi is able to perfectly execute this due to his eidetic memory.

Many styles of swordplay follow a sort of rhythm, and unlike others, Kusanagi’s Flowing Belief does not believe in being restricted to one form of Kenjutsu alone, and should instead utilize a variety of Kenjutsu as one continues to mature in the art of Kenjutsu. Now, as any true follower of Kenjutsu knows that many forms of Kenjutsu should follow a rhythm, which the form of combat follows depending on the speed, strength, timing, and type of Kenjutsu utilized. Due to Kusanagi’s lack of a rhythm, almost all that have fought him have found trouble in finding a weak point in Kusanagi’s defense, as his varying usage of Kenjutsu is almost impossible to pinpoint, and very few weaknesses have been found. It is due to the fact that Kusanagi does not follow a certain form of Kenjutsu, which allows him to fight against masters and be regarded as one. Practically every practitioner of Kenjutsu follows a certain form of Kenjutsu, and it is due to this lack of a certain form which has allowed Kusanagi to defeat all of his challengers, as it has been proven next-to-impossible for one to adapt to Kusanagi’s ever-changing flow.

Kusanagi has also adopted another belief, the belief known as the ‘Rigid Belief’. The rigid belief states that any Kenjutsu practitioner should solely follow a single form of Kenjutsu, and must master such to be regarded as a master of the blade. Kusanagi has taken upon certain aspects of the belief, and he himself has mastered his own unique form of Kenjutsu, the Gyakufunsha Kata. By mastering this Kenjutsu art, Kusanagi is able to decrypt the major strength of an opponent, and is able to his Kenjutsu mastery to break down the opponent. Due to Kusanagi believing in two different beliefs, two beliefs which contrast at the level of the Yin and Yang, he had been regarded as an open-minded man, as he is shown to believe in a multitude of beliefs.

Kusanagi’s swordsmanship relies heavily on three aspects; speed, strength, and accuracy. Kusanagi’s speed in Kenjutsu relies heavily on his dormant Shinigami chakra within himself, which allows for him to move at speeds close to that of sound. When used in collaboration with the art of Iaidō, Kusanagi has been noted to be able to decapitate an attacker before they can blink. Since the average individual blinks in within 300-400 milliseconds, Kusanagi is known to be able to attack in less than one-third of a second; a feat many envy. This speed is also revered more so in Kusanagi’s combat when one considers he evasion speed. Kusanagi is able to move brief milliseconds before an opponent’s blade strikes, Kusanagi moving only by the bare minimum distance required. With this ideology, Kusanagi often saves himself minor amounts of stamina, which are known to prove to be highly useful in the final stretch of combat. When it comes to strength, Kusanagi is no pushover. Kusanagi often says that speed is much stronger with the aspect of strength, and Kusanagi’s application of such proves his statement true. His strength is comparable to that of ’s own strength when having opened two of the eight gates. The sheer amount of force Kusanagi is able to apply is enough to shatter through blades made of weak quality, an occurrence which occurs more often than one would think. Kusanagi’s strength comes with a price, which is the amount of stress it puts on Kusanagi. Using all of his strength right off of the bat would drain him quickly, and thus Kusanagi only uses his full strength when absolutely needed, and has only used his full capabilities in a death match with an old comrade. Practically every swordsman requires the skill to have close to perfect abilities in accuracy, as if one is not accurate, there would have been no point in the training. Kusanagi’s accuracy is close to perfect, largely due to the fact that Kusanagi’s intelligence allows him to constantly be ten steps ahead of his opponent, and is often able to force an opponent to perform certain moves, based on what Kusanagi believes would put him at an advantage. Kusanagi is rarely known to miss an opponent and has only done so against users of Space-Time Ninjutsu, specifically against users of the Flying Thunder God Technique. Despite Kusanagi’s ever-changing style of swordplay, most of Kusanagi’s attacks and defenses are usually an amalgamation of two or more styles, and eventually each aspect of Kusanagi’s Wave Motion Slashes’ roots can be traced down into many forms of Kenjutsu. These forms all have their weaknesses, but due to Kusanagi’s usage of them by combining two or more forms of Kenjutsu, Kusanagi more or less covers any weaknesses that could potentially lead to his own downfall. Two of the most commonly seen of Kusanagi’s combinations is a combination of the and the, two forms of Kenjutsu. The Niten Ichi-ryū is also known as the Niten Ichi (二天一, "Two heavens as one"). As the name implies, this form of Kenjutsu requires the usage of two blades, one and one. The blades are used in a ‘cover-up’ fashion, in the sense that in the rare occasion that one does falter, the other blade can be used as a sidearm to continue. The blades are used in rapid succession, in order to heavily damage the opponent. There are three main branches within the Niten Ichi-ryū; Taichi Seiho, Kodachi Seiho, and Nito Seiho. Master of these three branches is a preliminary requirement if one wishes to master this art. The second art utilized in this combination is the Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū, also simply referred to as “Eishin-ryū”, is a branch of Kenjutsu techniques focusing on the unsheathing of a blade at high speeds, and utilizes bladeplay at a relatively low positioning. By unsheathing one’s blade at a relatively high speed allows for the upper advantage in combat, as by unsheathing the blade at this quickened rate allows for Kusanagi to quickly decapitate one before the battle has begun. The second factor of this Kenjutsu format is the usage of a low blade position. By keeping the blade at a low position, it makes it harder for the opponent to determine where the blade shall move next, allowing for surprise attacks at unprecedented angles. This form of Kenjutsu has five different sub-branches; Seiza no Bu, Tatehiza no Bu, Okuiai Iwaza no Bu, Okuiai Tachiwaza no Bu, and Bangai no Bu. Mastery of these are a prerequisite to master this form of Kenjutsu.

The next unique combination within Kusanagi’s arsenal is a combination of the and the  forms of Kenjutsu. Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū, also referred to as “Ienao Kata”, is a form of Kenjutsu focusing on over-hand slashes and retaining a lowered positioning of the blade. The usage of over-hand slashes allows for Kusanagi to have more power in his downward slashes, a factor which he relies on within his overall Kenjutsu prowess. The usage of keeping the blade at a lowered position makes it many times harder for the opponent to determine where the blade shall move next, allowing for surprise attacks at unprecedented angles. This form of Kenjutsu has three different sub-branches; Kashima Kata, Ryū Kata, and Munen Kata. Mastery of these three sub-branches is a prerequisite for mastery of this form of Kenjutsu. The second form of Kenjutsu used in this combination is the Kenjutsu form of Shindō Munen-ryū. Shindō Munen-ryū, also known as “Shintō Munen-ryū”, is a form of Kenjutsu which focuses on ‘continuation’. One practically never stops movement when using this form of Kenjutsu. This allows for Kusanagi to collect more speed, and eventually outlast the opponent when it comes to the stamina portion of this Kenjutsu. This form of Kenjutsu has twelve main curricular points; Iwanami, Ukifune Gaeshi, Noarashi Gaeshi, Utsusemi, Matsukaze, Zangetsu Hidari, Zangetsu Migi, Doto Gaeshi, Raito Gaeshi, Yoto, Into, and Inazuma Gaeshi. Mastery of these twelve curricular aspects is the only way to truly master this format of Kenjutsu.

Trivia

 * Overview of this comes from the main page's Kenjutsu section.