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The Jigen sword technique was aiming at the highest speed of impact. The highest level of perfection was called flame cloud. This is described in the Manual of Jigen Style Military Techniques as follows: “One eighth of a minute is a byō. A tenth of a byō is called shi. A tenth of a shi is a kotsu. A tenth of a kotsu is a kō. A tenth of a kō is called rin. When one has reached rin this level is called ‘Cloud of Flames’ (unyō).”

The masters of the Jigen style were said to be able to cut raindrops falling from the roof three times before they hit the ground. To train the mental concentration necessary to carry out such ultra high-speed strikes, a special training method was used called “hitting a standing tree” (tachi ki uchi). Partner exercises were not part of the training. Instead, a branch of a Yusu tree was cut and used as a wooden sword to hit a wooden block diagonally from left to right with a loud kiai. “Hitting a standing tree” became the incentive for master Matsumura to invent the training method “hitting the punching board” (makiwara zuki), which is still widely used in traditional karate. As mentioned above, master Itosu, who had been taught by master Matsumura, practiced this on a regular basis38