torus wrote:Actually, the guy cut off the head no matter what, at least in a ceremony (not on the battlefield). Do you really think that they would want to sit around and watch as the guy slowly drained of blood?
(I saw "Hara-kiri")
True, they would cut of the head (and leaving little skin left so the head wouldn't be separated from the body) right after they stabbed themselves. I was mixing seppuku and jumonji-giri, where in jumonji-giri there is no person behind cutting of the head. Instead they will place another cut across their stomach which is very painful and they would slowly die from the loss of blood. And they were expected to bear this suffering quietly until dead.