Nakiri bōchō
Nakiri bōchō (, translation: knife for cutting greens) and usuba bōchō (, thin knife) are Japanese-style vegetable knives. They differ from the "deba bōchō" in their shape, as they have a straight blade edge suitable for cutting all the way to the cutting board without the need for a horizontal pull or push. These knives are also much thinner. While the "deba bōchō" is a heavy blade for easy cutting through thin bones, the blade is not suitable for chopping vegetables, as the thicker blade can break the vegetable slice. The "nakiri bōchō" and the "usuba bōchō" have a  much thinner blade. This does not help with cutting small bones in fish or meat, but is useful for cutting vegetables. "Nakiri bōchō" are knives for home use, and sometimes have a black finished, or Kurouchi, blade. The cutting edge is angled from both sides, called "ryōba" in Japanese. This makes it easier to cut straight slices. "Usuba bōchō" are vegetable knives used by professionals. They differ from the "Nakiri bōchō" in the shape of the cutting edge. While the "nakiri bōchō" is sharpened from both sides, the "usuba bōchō" is sharpened only from one side, a style known as  kataba in Japanese. The highest quality "kataba" blades have a slight depression on the flat side. This "kataba" style edge gives better cuts and allows for the cutting of thinner slices than the "ryōba" used for "nakiri bōchō", but requires more skill to use. The sharpened side is usually the right side for a right hand use of the knife, but knives sharpened on the left side are available for left hand use. The "usuba bōchō" is heavier than a "nakiri bōchō", although still much lighter than a "deba bōchō".