"The modern day samurai, for many years, has been a fictional trope found in many pieces of contemporary media. A man brandishing a blade against an opponent using a firearm signifies talent, bravery, or oftentimes stupidity. The moment the risk of such a decision vanished is when ballistic armor became effective and cheap. Anyone can withstand a small artillery barrage with enough tech, and cheap bootleg coming from Asia made such protection wildly affordable, though at times shoddy. In order to counteract this, many arms companies have developed small arms capable of piercing such armor, popular options being microfilament and superheated blades. Megacorps tend to hire talented swordsman to attempt under-the-table skirmishes and assassinations using such weaponry, since these warriors tend to be more effective and quiet."

"...When distance hardly matters, it's better to run. "

A piece I did a few months ago. Had some fun with it.