Sukekane (助包) is a name that appears in with multiple entries spanning both the and lineages of Province. According to prevailing scholarship, smiths signing Sukekane are recorded among around Genryaku (1184–1185) and among around Joei (1232–1233), and within the lineage alone it appears that there were two or three smiths of the name — one view holds that there are as many as five distinct "types" of Sukekane signatures across the full span. The conventional division holds that the small-form signature is regarded as and the large-form hand as ; however, as the cautions, "from the manner of the calligraphy and the overall signature style, this division is not necessarily easy, and careful scrutiny is required." Indeed, a National Treasure bearing a small-form signature — the celebrated blade with of the Inshu Ikeda family — has been appraised as , and even among -sho there are divergent opinions as to whether its maker is the person as the smith represented by the large-form signed works.
The works attributed to Sukekane display the full spectrum of expression. In the flamboyant mode, the shows refined densely forged with attached, while stands out prominently. The takes as its principal tone, mixed with and ; and enter well, and fine appear frequently. The composition of the is "richly varied through the intermixture of large and small clusters," and the may be deeply tempered to the point of becoming almost . In the more restrained mode — seen in certain signed — the temper shifts to or with a shallow tendency and , conveying what the describes as "a restrained but accomplished workmanship." The forging in these quieter works is an enriched by well-defined , occasionally showing a tendency toward . Across both registers, the characteristic features of the school — , , and of varying density — remain constant markers.
The evaluations consistently affirm Sukekane's place among the distinguished makers of the school. Works are described as possessing an "imposing" overall form, with shapes that are johin — refined and elegant — and workmanship in both and judged "excellent." Of the finest examples, the board observes that they express "to the fullest, the essential appeal of ," and that their "importance and preciousness are exceptionally high." Even where attribution must remain circumspect — as with unsigned blades handed down under the Sukekane name — the affirms that "there can be no dispute that it is a fine sword (meito)." That Sukekane's oeuvre encompasses both the brilliant flamboyance of high-tempered and the quiet dignity of -based work testifies to the breadth of accomplishment within this lineage, and to the enduring difficulty of resolving its individual identities with certainty.