I did not like the story of the White Tigers. I like Oda Nobunaga, Musashi, and the such. Miyamoto Musashi was the inspiration for all of those anime characters who use wooden swords because, according to his legend, toward the end of his fighting life, he began using a wooden sword so that he did not kill every enemy he faced, the light weight of the wooden sword was also beneficial to his win streak.
Don't know if all of that is true, probably a little legendary embellishment but, that is how
I was told.