The Dōtanuki (同田貫) line took shape in Kikuchi District of Province toward the close of the period and carried its activity forward into the era, spanning the transition into early . The of the group's own blades name several of its hands: Ueno no , whose dated work runs from Tenshō through Keichō and who is therefore described as a maker active across the divide between old and new traditions; Fujiwara Masakuni, treated as a leading smith of the school; Masahiro, whose the register notes is absent from the and so supplements that omission; and Matahachi. The accounts further list Samanosuke, Hyōbu, Matahachizaemon, and Kunikatsu among the line's signing smiths. The group is repeatedly framed as a representative Kyūshū lineage of the period, working in the domain that would become the ground of 's later military culture.
The shared vocabulary of the is plain and consistent. The is described as sturdy and uncompromising, bukotsu, with wide , thick , and ample , and little difference between base and tip width; on swords the can be pronounced and the extended, while the spears and large show flaring, full heads. The is , often with and mixed in and a tendency toward , with adhering and at times visible. The moves between two registers: a base mixed with , , and ko-, and a quieter with and ; across both the tends to be tight, gathers densely, and , , , and recur. The hand is recognized by this combination of robust unrefined build and a whose tight and clustered read as rustic rather than ornamental. The register notes a , a subdued tendency in both and , that lends a restrained austerity.
For , the diagnostic cluster is the heavy, broad with thick and full , the standing with , the tight clustered , and the bold inscriptions cut with a thick chisel, often opening with the two raised characters "Kyūshū." The return again and again to cutting power: the sharpness of these blades is highly praised, and they are recorded as practical weapons carried into use. Provenance survives in mounted form, including a by Masakuni accompanied by a black lacquer mounting with gold judged contemporary with the blade, and a Matahachi with its black-lacquered pole mounting. Within the line, individual works are singled out as superior examples that convey the school's character, the Ueno no of Keichō 16 being read as exceptionally fine among its peers. The register places Dōtanuki as a lineage whose unadorned strength and cutting reputation hold a recognized standing in the -period record.