This blade slices, it dices

In the Quentin Tarantino movie "Kill Bill," Uma Thurman flies to Okinawa on a fateful mission: to find the greatest samurai blade ever forged. There she meets a white-robed master blacksmith who hands her a gleaming katana and solemnly intones, "I can tell you, with no ego, this is my finest sword."

Like Uma, I went on a quest for "Japanese steel." But my intentions were less homicidal: I… » Full Story on Salon.com