They don’t come much more badass than Isao Machii. Dubbed the “Heisei Samurai” or “Modern Samurai” he’s a five-time Guiness World Record holder for feats such as slicing a BB pellet in half mid-flight with a sword. He is also the creator of the Shushin-ryu style of Iaijutsu which is a martial art centered on sudden sword strikes.

Needless to say, this guy has the skills to pay the bills. And pay bills he does by occasionally appearing in commercials. Last year, we saw him promote Toaster Strudel by playing a live version of Fruit Ninja. Now, he’s back to take on more food with his mighty sword, this time at speeds of up to 150 kilometers per hour (93 mph).

In the SoftBank ad, Machii first squares off against an orange fired from a pitching machine at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour (50 mph). Speeds like that are almost too slow for Machii, though, as he slices the citrus almost perfectly in half.

Next up is a fried prawn fired lengthwise through a tube at 130 kilometers per hour (80 mph). Just before reaching striking range, the shrimp pitches backwards a little and reveals its deliciously battered underside for a precision iaijutsu stroke.

Finally we have a glowing red ball. That actually seems a little easier than the shrimp, but it’s going 150 kilometers per hour (93 mph) and having it glow red helps the rest of us who don’t have Isao Michii’s superhuman eyes follow along. The video shows it partially at full speed so you can get a sense of how fast the ball and Michii are moving.

The whole purpose of this display is promote mobile carrier SoftBank’s new Sharp Speed Platinum Band LTE, because it’s apparently fast…fast like a samurai cutting through flying shrimp.

More than likely this brief display will leave you wanting more demonstrations of iaido. So, like before here is a nice highlight reel of some of his best strikes to leave with you. You can find more of Isao Michii’s appearances and learn more about Shushin-ryu through his website, Facebook, and YouTube pages linked below.

Isao Michii
Website
Facebook
YouTube Channel

Source: YouTube – SoftBank
GIF image/highlight Video: YouTube – 50raisans