Even the quicker ways to kill fish than suffocation, like ike jime, are still terribly hard to watch (and endure)! First, a thin spike is jabbed into the fish’s brain with a quiet crunch-pop. Next, the fish's gill arches and tail is cut, for the fish to start to bleed out. Finally, the tail is folded back against the fish's body, exposing the spinal cord and the neural tube that sits above it. A long wire is threaded into the tube and reamed back and forth. The fish shudders and then lies still.