Fune Bo

Fune Bo was two different weapons, one developed as a countermeasure of the first. Confusingly, both variations were called Fune Bo.

Original Fune Bo
The fune bo was developed by a Yasuki Merchant to keep pirates away from his ship, for even a moment. The weapon was metal polearm with a square attached to the end. When the pirate ship got close enough to the ship, the Fune Bo was braced against the enemy ship, stopping it from approaching and boarding the merchant ship. Fune Bo would delay them and give the fleeing ship enough time to get to safety.

Pirate Fune Bo
After running into the weapon several times, a pirate figured out a variation, and replaced the square with a vicious hook. The alternate Fune Bo clawed into the fleeing target and hooked the two ships together. This method of slowing the prey lasted only seconds, but this increment could make all the difference.