Nakiri is my favorite kitchen blade; in fact I use it in ways that would surely offend the Japanese blacksmiths who made mine. I would caution against comparing it to a Chinese cleaver though. Although they have a similar profile when viewed at a distance, they are designed strictly for vegetables, and a good one (thin and hard…..and therefore a bit brittle) are NOT designed for the things a cleaver can do. Chopping through bones would definitely knick (or worse) the blade of a good nikiri.