Miyamoto Musashi

The samurai scowls. His eyes narrow. He slowly draws his katana – the sacred weapon of Japan's elite warrior caste. Forged through a delicate and complicated process of folding a specialized steel to create a keen, honed edge capable of slicing through bone, flesh, and armor with ease, the long sword is the most treasured possession of Japan's elite. In the hands of a master, few things on Earth are deadlier.

Denshichiro Yoshioka is such a master. His family has taught the combat arts to samurai for generations, including the mighty Ashikaga Shoguns themselves. His style is flawless. His movements honed from decades of training. His reputation that of one of Japan's most elite swordsmen.

Across from him in the dueling circle is a wandering ronin. A lordless swordsman. A rogue, drifting across the land, brazenly challenging the leaders of Japan's most illustrious fighting schools to single combat.

This ronin’s face is scarred, his beard scraggly, his eyes wild, his hair loosely tied up in a topknot above his head. He looks more animal than man.

In his hand, the ronin carries not a katana, but a wooden sword. A practice weapon, used to train children.

Who would have the audacity to bring that here, to a duel to the death??

Denshichiro can barely contain his rage. This insult cannot be forgiven.

His opponent, the ronin Miyamoto Musashi, smiles slightly. He nods to begin the combat, and violently hurls himself into the fray.

There is a term in Japan: kensei. Sword Saints. The peerless warriors bestowed with this honorific title were such hardcore blade-swinging warriors that they were actually believed to have possessed otherworldly abilities with their weapon of choice. Fierce fighters, perfectly-tuned machines who had ascended to a plane where they had become one with the sword. Their movements were precise, their reactions instinctive, their form as flawless and graceful as it was deadly. At the forefront of this pantheon of warrior-gods stands one legendary man: Miyamoto Musashi.

In part 2, Pat and Ben continue the story of Miyamoto Musashi, who has now drawn the rage of the Yoshioka Clan of sword instructors. They swear vengeance upon the strange wandering ronin, set a trap for him, and hope to ensnare Feudal Japan's greatest swordsman in a massive ambush. Musashi may be a peerless fighter, without equal, but with the enemy outnumbering him so heavily, it will be a struggle for even the greatest warriors to survive.

Badass of the Week is an iHeart radio podcast produced by High Five Content. Executive producers are Andrew Jacobs, Pat Larash, and Ben Thompson. Writing is by Pat and Ben. Story editing is by Ian Jacobs, Brandon Fibbs and Ali Lemer. Mixing and music and Sound Design is by Jude Brewer. Consulting by Michael May. Special thanks to Noel Brown at iHeart. Badass of the Week is based on the website BadassoftheWeek.com, where you can read all sorts of stories about other badasses. If you want to reach out with questions or ideas, you can email us at badasspodcast@badassoftheweek.com. If you like the podcast, subscribe, follow, listen and tell your friends and your enemies if you want, as we'll be back next week with another one. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio App, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.