H. Yondan, Step 5-8, Ikkyu, Nihou Geri, Kabuto Uchi

[HanshiClayton]

Reference, "Kabuto Uchi" (helmet strike), see page 45 of U.S. Army Hand-To-Hand Combat: FM 21-150, June 1954.
Also, Figure 7-7 and 7-9 of US Army, FM 21-150, Combatives - Hand to Hand Combat, September 1992.

Step 5-8 of H. Yondan is the side-snap kick with uraken, followed by an elbow strike to the palm of the hand. This is a continuation of the lesson introduced in step 7 of H. Nidan.

Note that the yoko geri keage (side-snap kick) is unique to Shotokan. Other styles all use mae geri keage (front snap kick) instead. We don't know why Funakoshi substituted the side kick in Shotokan. The original application used the front kick. See the "perspective" article, step 5-8, for the details.

The Shuri bodyguards trained to confront several very different types of enemies. One threat was the garrison of Satsuma soldiers stationed at Naha, and military units occasionally dispatched from Kagoshima. When these soldiers deployed for battle, they wore samurai armor. This armor posed a special, but not insurmountable, problem for the Shuri bodyguards. The samurai armor provided no protection against joint locking, and was surprisingly vulnerable in the neck and upper back. See the essay on the vulnerabilities of Japanese armor for the details.

I must credit Iain Abernethy for some inspiration relative to step 5-8. He had the insight that this move involves an ikkyo arm lock, a hair-grab, and a kick. I can also give some credit to the US ARMY Field Manual 21-150, which long ago taught me how to use a soldier's own helmet against him. You can grab the helmet and wrench it back to break the soldier's neck, or simply to expose his throat to your knife. If the helmet isn't fastened securely it can come off in your hand. In that case, you crack his skull with it.

Here's what is happening in step 5-8.

Having disarmed the samurai soldier in step 1-4, it is now our problem to subdue him. At the opening of step 5, you have the soldier's left arm in an ikkyo arm bar. His left hand is captured by both of your hands, symbolized by the cup-and-saucer koshi kamae at the opening of step 5. Your left elbow applies pressure to his locked elbow as your hands apply painful torsion to this wrist.

By twisting his straightened arm anti-clockwise and leaning on his locked elbow, you can force him to bend over to your left. The simple ending is to snap-kick his face with your left foot, as we did in H. Nidan. However, this kata builds on that elementary lesson.

Maintain the wristlock with your right hand. Using your left hand, reach for the back edge of his helmet and get a strong grip there. (This is the backfist strike, or Iain's hair grab.) Use your control of his head and arm to turn him about 45 degrees to your right, lining up his face for a knee strike (hiza geri) from your left knee. If you line it up correctly, you can perform the devastating nihou geri, the kick that hits two treasures. Your left knee impacts his face, while at the same time your left foot strikes his groin. Samurai armor does not protect these two targets from this type of impact.

As noted above, when you grab a soldier's helmet there is always the chance that the chin strap will break and the helmet will come off in your hand. Step 6 of the kata is quite clear about what to do next: use the helmet as a hammer to strike his head (kabuto uchi). Catch his head between the iron helmet and the anvil provided by your right elbow (this is the empi uchi). The elbow strike braces his skull against the impact of the iron pot on the opposite side. This should put him out of the fight for a while.

Step 7-8 is the mirror image of these techniques.