 If fictional, he may have been based on Shishido Ietoshi (宍戸家俊).In the manga "Vagabond", the original Shishido Baiken was a bandit leader who did use the "kusarigama" only to be killed by Tsujikaze Kohei, who then took up the name and weapon and became the source for the "kusarigama"'s notoriety.His duel with Musashi would be significant for Musashi's use of both the long and short swords, allowing him to simply strike back with the "katana" after his "wakizashi" was ensnared.