the regular katana is usually 70 cm (2 feet, 3 inches) but rarely longer. It was called monohoshizao (Clothes/Laundry-Drying Pole, 物干し竿, often translated into English as "The Drying Pole"). Despite the sword's length and weight, Kojirō's strikes with the weapon were unusually quick and precise. Swallow cut His favourite technique was both respected and feared throughout feudal Japan. It was called the "Turning Swallow Cut" or Tsubame Gaeshi (燕返し, "Swallow Reversal / Return"), and was so named because it mimicked the motion of a swallow's tail during flight as observed at Kintaibashi Bridge in Iwakuni. This cut was reputedly so quick and precise that it could strike down a bird in mid-flight. There are no direct descriptions of the technique, but it was compared to two other techniques current at the time: the Ittō-ryū's Kinshi Cho Ōken and the Ganryū Kosetsu To; respectively the two involved fierce and swift cuts downward and then immediately upwards. Hence, the "Turning Swallow Cut" has been reconstructed as a technique involving striking downward from above and then instantly striking again in an upward motion from below. The strike's second phase could be from below toward the rear and then upward at an angle, like an eagle climbing again after swooping down on its prey. Sasaki created this technique around 1605. In popular culture Like most of the well-known samurai of his era, Sasaki was depicted in several places: He plays a central role in the novel, Musashi, by Eiji Yoshikawa. His life is described in a parallel storyline. In various film adaptations of his story or that of Miyamoto Musashi. For example, in Zoku Miyamoto Musashi: Ichijōji no kettō (Samurai 2: Duel at Ichijoji Temple; 1955; Director / Screenplay: Hiroshi Inagaki). In the manga Vagabond, he plays a central role alongside Musashi and is shown here as deaf. Tachibana Ukyo from the computer game Samurai Shodown is modelled after Sasaki, just like the character Haōmaru is modelled after Miyamoto Musashi. In the visual novel and anime Fate/stay night, Sasaki also played the role of a minor character. In the video game Brave Fencer Musashi, the archrival of the protagonist (Musashi) was named after him. In the Pokémon series, the original Japanese name for the Flying-type move Aerial Ace is Tsubame Gaeshi. Additionally, the anime characters Jessie and James are known in Japan as Musashi and Kojirō, respectively. In the anime and manga Record of