Bujinkan kata 風盂 Fūu

From www.rojodojo.com my Bujinkan video exploring the kata 風盂 Fūu.
We warmed up with ukemi and taijutsu with a sword in our belt. By the time we got to koho kaiten, I could see that this was too advanced for some. But it gets worse. Because not only must you overcome the encumbrance of the sword and saya, you must be able to draw and cut! The roll itself is the cut. People make the mistake of doing them separately… roll then cut. No, it should be a rolling draw and cut.
I began class with 風盂 Fūu. Muto dori that borders on mystical. But I shared a trick I learned recently from Soke to use your shako ken like totoku. Then with the use of kaname you remove his sword. Everything explodes from this pivot point.
I decided to make that more concrete for the students by doing a type of tehodoki. Pivot around the grab and explode out from this point. The attacker will be left with a broken nose, or lose some teeth.
To finish, I returned to the sword. But I showed how to manipulate it like a hanbo. Then all the leverage techniques of weapon retention apply. Except you turn them against the weapons owner! The opponent’s own sword is reflected back on him.
I kept the focus on connecting with the elbow as I had learned from Hatsumi Sensei back in November or December. This requires a very subtle muto dori evasion.
This kata has a particular hold when you capture the opponent’s sword. It is the way you catch or palm the tsuba. After you tear away the sword from your opponent, you cut with this unusual grip.
I next shared a way to increase the leverage on his blade if his grip is too strong. You grasp the kashira instead of the tsuba. From here you may lever the entire sword using principles of juppo sessho.
Next, I had the opponent swing at me with a tsurugi. This is a one handed swing that arcs in at an angle. So your evasion must harmonize with this arc by getting low in the legs.
In 2013, during my studies with Soke in Japan, he had a peculiar way of using the tsurugi. It involved twisting and snaking around. I bit like a serpent as I wrote: The Theme for 2013 is Like a Dragon Wrapped Around a 劍 Tsurugi
When you harness this feeling, your attacker’s weapon turns against him. Every twist leaves him writhing as he is wrapped around his own sword. He becomes prey of his own will to attack.
00:00 Preview
01:28 Ukemi with a sword
06:04 風盂 Fūu
07:47 kamae to control space
11:00 if the opponent won’t let go
15:05 taijutsu henka with tehodoki
18:50 Sword tehodoki
21:30 tsurugi Henka from Hatsumi Sensei
27:02 Old Bujinkan Honbu Outro