A sword, similiar in design to a
katana, wielded not only by samurai, but by "non-warrior" class
people who were forbidden by law to wear a longsword. The wakazashi has a shorter blade than a katana, usually ranging from
12-23 inches in length.
Should a
samurai's
katana break in combat, or if the samurai needed an offhand
weapon, he would usually carry a wakazashi as a back-up