Sugata
Sesko sums up the shape of the Sa school in the mid-Nanbokuchō: little taper towards the point, little niku, a thin kasane, a narrow shinogi-ji, a shallow toriizori and an ō-kissaki with little fukura. The Tsuchiura katana is shinogi-zukuri, with a mitsu-mune, wide and with little difference between the base and the point, with a somewhat deep curvature and an ō-kissaki. The one of the 62nd Jūyō session is shinogi-zukuri, with an iori-mune, a degree wider than normal, with little difference between base and point, a normal kasane, a somewhat deep curvature and an ō-kissaki.
Jihada
On the Tsuchiura one, tight itame with plenty of ji-nie and chikei. On the one of the 62nd session, itame with mokume, here and there ko-itame and nagare-hada, somewhat hadatachi; thick ji-nie, good chikei and a little shirake; the steel is a bluish black.
Hamon
On the Tsuchiura one, on a suguha base, a shallow notare with ko-gunome, many ashi and yō and a bright nioiguchi. On the one of the 62nd session, also on suguha: a shallow notare with gunome, square gunome, ko-notare and togariba; ashi and yō, deep nioi, thick ko-nie and, in places, rougher nie; uchinoke, yubashiri, and many kinsuji and sunagashi.
Bōshi
On the Tsuchiura one, a ko-midare that rises with a sharp tip and turns back (kaeri). On the one of the 62nd session, a somewhat pointed midare-komi with plenty of hakikake on one side, and something of a notare-komi with a ko-maru kaeri on the other. The NBTHK says that the hamon and the bōshi clearly show the features of the Sa school.
Nakago and mei
Both are heavily shortened (ō-suriage) and unsigned (mumei), with the tip cut straight (kiri). The Tsuchiura one has kiri file marks, two holes, a bōhi on both sides and a double sword (双剣, sōken) in relief on the nakago. The one of the 62nd session has illegible file marks and three holes, two of them plugged; it bears a bōhi on one side and two grooves (二筋樋, futasuji-hi) on the other.
The NBTHK’s judgement
Although heavily shortened and unsigned, the NBTHK saw in the blade of the 62nd session the robust, wide body with an ō-kissaki typical of the Nanbokuchō, and concluded that it is the one that most resembles Hiroyuki and that the traditional attribution is correct. Its sayagaki is by Tanobe Michihiro (田野辺道宏, Tanobe Michihiro): 筑前國左弘行 (Chikuzen no kuni Sa Hiroyuki), heavily shortened and unsigned, from the Enbun and Jōji eras (延文・貞治, Enbun–Jōji, 1356–1368).