Top 10 Sword Fighting Anime and Manga

Top 10 Sword Fighting Anime and Manga 

Sword fighting anime/manga; samurais, ninjas, soul reapers, and half naked babes; the embodiment of anime/manga. This list was actually really hard to make I had to use both anime and manga.

1. Shigurui
-Artfully done, both anime and manga. Gory, action packed, awesome. (Manga and Anime)

The story begins in 1629 Shizuoka during Tokugawa Tadanaga's rule. The daimyo staged a tournament where the participants fought with real steel Japanese swords rather than bokken ("wooden sword"), against his vassals' strong objection. The story revolves around the first match between the one-armed swordsman Fujiki Gennosuke and the blind samurai Irako Seigen and deals with the circumstances that led the two to participate in Tokugawa's tournament.

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Great art in the manga and an artistic approach to the animation in the anime. The fight scenes are great, they have gore and sweet sword techniques. The story is pretty strong, and the characters develop. The anime leave the viewer hanging, where as the manga continues far pass the anime. I enjoyed this series full circle, liking the anime and manga and think it is a work of art. What I particularly like about Shigurui is that there is no real good guys and no real bad guys, each side is justified and are acting in a manner that can perceived as "good/proper".
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You can watch it here
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2. Vagabond
- Realistic art, historical setting, awesome fight scenes. (Manga)

Growing up in the late 16th century Sengoku era Japan, Shinmen Takezo is shunned by the local villagers as a devil child due to his wild and violent nature. Running away from home with a fellow boy at age 17, Takezo joins the Toyotomi army to fight the Tokugawa clan at the battle of Sekigahara. However, the Tokugawa win a crushing victory, leading to nearly three hundred years of Shogunate rule. Takezo and his friend manage to survive the battle, and afterwards swear to do great things with their lives. However, after their paths separate, Takezo becomes a wanted criminal and must change his name and his nature in order to escape an ignoble death. Based on the book Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa, Vagabond is a fictional retelling of the life of Miyamoto Musashi, often referred to as the "Sword Saint", perhaps the most famous and successful of Japan's sword fighters.

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A pretty legit manga, Vagabond would be ranked number 1 if it had an anime. Realistic art, more so than Shigurui and most manga, a historical based setting, amazing fight scenes, it really has it all. The manga is pretty long, giving you a longer/larger amount of enjoyment. Even though it is long, it doesn't get stale or dull. As another plus is that it is about Miyamoto Musashi who was a beast, a plain-out awesome dude, the best swordsman ever.
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You can read it here.
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3. Rurouni Kenshin

140 years ago in Kyoto, with the coming of the American "Black Ships," there arose a warrior who, felling men with his bloodstained blade, gained the name Hitokiri, man slayer! His killer blade helped close the turbulent Bakumatsu era and slashed open the progressive age known as Meiji. Then he vanished, and with the flow of years, became legend.
Now, ten years into the Meiji Era, a man named Kenshin Himura appears and is revealed to be the Batousai. 
Join Kenshin, Kaoru, Yahiko and Sanosuke as they battle it out with their enemies while Kenshin is trying to stop his 'other self' getting out of control.....

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Rurouni Kenshin takes me back, I was so young! XD It was back in the days of old Toonami.
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You can read it here.
You can watch it here.
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4. Bleach

Ichigo Kurosaki has always been able to see ghosts, but this ability doesn't change his life nearly as much as his close encounter with Rukia Kuchiki, a Shinigami and member of the mysterious Soul Society.

While fighting a Hollow, an evil spirit that preys on humans who display psychic energy, Rukia attempts to lend Ichigo some of her powers so that he can save his family; but much to her surprise, Ichigo absorbs every last drop of her energy.

Now a full-fledged Shinigami himself, Ichigo quickly learns that the world he inhabits is one full of dangerous spirits and, along with Rukia, it's Ichigo's job to protect the innocent from Hollows and help the spirits themselves find peace.

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You can read it here.
You can watch it here.
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5. The Sacred Blacksmith

44 years ago, a great war known as the Valbanill War ravaged the land. One of the war's most dangerous weapons was the Demon Contract, where humans sacrifice their bodies to become powerful demons. Realizing the damage the contracts have caused the land, the surviving nations made peace and banned the use of the Demon contracts.Cecily Cambell is a 3rd generation Knight from Housman, one of the cities of the Independent Trade Cities, a democratic federation of cities. As her grandfather was one of the founders of the Independent Trade Cities, she is proud of her heritage and wishes to protect her city as a knight, like her father and grandfather before her. One day, she fights a mad veteran of the war causing trouble in the market, and, inexperienced and overmatched, faces defeat. But she is saved by a mysterious blacksmith named Luke Ainsworth. Cecily is impressed by Luke's katana, a weapon she has never seen before, and asks him to make one for her. Her involvement with Luke will bring her to an adventure she never expected.

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You can watch it here.
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6. Afro Samurai

Afro Samurai

In a futuristic yet feudal Japan, it is said that the one who wields the Number 1 headband is the fiercest fighter in the world and shall possess godlike powers. The only way to obtain the Number 1 headband is to challenge and defeat him in combat. However, only the Number 2 can challenge the Number 1, while anyone can challenge the Number 2, which causes a constant struggle for the Number 2 headband.Justice, the owner of the No. 2 headband, goes to fight the owner of the No. 1 headband, Afro's father. The two battle, ending with Justice decapitating Afro's father and claiming his headband. His head rolls in front of his son, Afro, as he sobs and vows revenge.

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You can watch it here.
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7. Blade of the Immortal

"To end his eternal suffering, he must slay one thousand enemies!" Manji, a ronin warrior of feudal Japan, has been cursed with immortality. To rid himself of this curse and end his life of misery, he must slay one thousand evil men! His quest begins when a young girl seeks his help in taking revenge on her parents' killers . . . and his quest won't end until the blood of a thousand has spilled!

HIROAKI SAMURA'S samurai manga Blade of the Immortal, a blood-soaked tale of the masterless samurai Manji's struggle with the blessing and curse of being immortal, is one the best translated manga available. Samura's stunning art and captivating story is nothing short of wizardry. Like no other action-oriented story, Samura blends in Blade the gore of ultra-violence with light slapstick comedy, gallows humor and deep emotional personal drama. His characters are diverse and three-dimensional, from the nihilistic and cynical Manji, to the orphaned Rin, to the hate-filled killers of the Itto-ryu sword school.

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You can read it here.
You can watch it here.
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8. Samurai 7

Samurai 7 tells the story of a village named Kanna. Every year during the harvest a group of bandits come and steal away almost all of the rice that had been harvested that year. Not only that, the bandits are becoming more demanding, now taking women and children in addition to rice.The elder of Kanna Village has decided that to protect the village they must hire samurai to fight against the bandits. However, the village has no money and thus must find samurai willing to protect the village for a payment of rice. Three members of the village leave to attempt to recruit samurai. They travel to the city and search for samurai willing to work, and after finding several samurai and having a few encounters with the local government they return to Kanna village to prepare defenses against the bandits.

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You can watch it here.
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9. Zombie Powder

Somewhere in the desert lies the world's greatest treasure: the 12 Rings of the Dead, the only source of the mysterious substance Zombie Powder, which can raise the dead and grant eternal life. Into this world stalks Gamma Akutabi, a man with a metal arm and a six-foot chainsaw, cybernetically enhanced master of the legendary martial art . But it takes more than one man to find the ultimate prize. You need a team: super-gunman C.T. Smith, knife-slinging teenager Elwood, and brilliant (and impossibly big-breasted) journalist Wolfgangina. Against an army of crooks and killers, against runaway trains and superpowered madmen, they'll need all their skills... but the most dangerous thing in the west might be the Rings themselves...

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You can read it here.
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10. Queen's Blade

In the Continent, a tournament called the Queen's Blade is held once every four years to determine the most beautiful and powerful Queen. Held in Gainos (ガイノス Gainosu?), the Queen's Capital, various fighters from all over the Continent travel to the Capital to defeat Aldra, the current Queen. The overall story of Queen's Blade focuses on Leina, the heiress of the esteemed Vance Family and next in line for the throne, as she travels to Gainos, encountering many other warriors also competing in the Queen's Blade for their own intentions.The original gamebooks feature characters designed by many popular artists, including Hirokazu Hisayuki (My-HiME), Kazuhiro Takamura, and Eiwa.

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I just watch it for the boobs...
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Sorry about being lazy after number 2, but since I put the top ranked first everything after that was kind of pointless. I might update this every now and then just to add more to each one. Sorry for getting this top 10 all backwards and stuff, it won't happen again.Also sorry for the Wikipedia Copying and Pasting, starting with the number 1 position missed me up.