Talk:I-400/Gallery/@comment-24930367-20171118011723/@comment-28112544-20171209003513

That looks like a wakizashi. While katana is better known to foreigners, the small wakizashi is the one they use to commit seppuku. The wakizashi is often passed onto relatives as keepsake too (katanas are more valuable so the victor may choose to keep it).

Just a wild guess, maybe it has something to do with the seiran crew? IJN were planning kamikaze mission with them but the war ended before it could happen.