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Okiku Doll -

According to the legend of the Okiku doll, a young boy bought a doll for his sister in 1918. It was a traditional doll with the typical okappa hairstyle, similar to a bob haircut. Sadly, the boy's sister died of the flu not long after. The family kept the doll and added it to a shrine dedicated to the poor girl.

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Okiku Doll -

Strangely, the family noticed that the doll's hair started to grow longer and longer. They believed that the restless spirit of their lost daughter had possessed the doll and was causing this supernatural growth. They left the doll in the care of the priests at the Mannen-ji Temple, where her hair reportedly continues to grow. Some visitors say that her mouth is also starting to open and baby teeth are growing inside!

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Aka Manto -

Aka Manto is a male demon who targets his victims when they're at their most vulnerable. He wears a white mask and red cloak and appears when they're on the toilet. He holds a roll of red toilet paper and a roll of blue toilet paper and asks which color you prefer.

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Aka Manto -

If you answer red, he stabs you to death, spraying your blood all over the stall. If you answer blue, he will either suffocate you or suck your blood, leaving you pale and blue on the floor.

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Toire no Hanako-san -

Aka Manto is far from being the only toilet-based legend in modern Japanese folklore. Toire no Hanako-san, or "Hanako of the Toilet," is a ghostly figure who can supposedly be summoned in bathrooms, similar to the legend of Bloody Mary. Brave schoolchildren can contact her by entering a bathroom on the third floor and knocking on the third stall three times, calling out to ask if she's there.

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Toire no Hanako-san -

If Hanako-san is there, the door will slowly creak open to reveal her, and she will grab the child and drag them into the toilet, never to be seen again. Hanako-san is believed to be the ghost of a girl who died while hiding in a bathroom during a bombing raid in World War II.

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'Tomino's Hell' -

Another legend rooted in war is that of the cursed poem 'Tomino's Hell.' It was written by Yaso Saijo in 1919 after his family was killed in World War I. It tells a gruesome tale of a child descending into hell, possibly after murdering their parents, depending on the interpretation.

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'Tomino's Hell' -

The opening reads, "Elder sister vomited blood, younger sister vomited fire and the cute Tomino vomited glass beads. Tomino Fell into Hell alone." Tomino falls into the lowest levels of Buddhist hell, reserved for those who kill their parents.

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'Tomino's Hell' -

For decades, people have claimed that reading the poem causes headaches and illness, and perhaps even death if read aloud all the way to the end. The myth was perpetuated when director Terama Shuji adapted the poem into a film in 1974, after which he died of liver disease at the young age of 47.

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Teke Teke -

Teke Teke is said to be the ghost of a young woman or girl who fell onto train tracks and was cut in half by an oncoming train. She now haunts train stations and other urban areas at night, dragging what's left of her torso along on her hands and elbows, which makes a disturbing "teke-teke" sound as she moves.

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Teke Teke -

Despite her limited mobility, Teke Teke can move surprisingly quickly, so if you see her coming, you better run! Some stories say she can even keep up with moving cars. If she catches you, she'll cut you in half with a scythe. Some versions say that she will ask you where her legs are before she kills you, and the only way to survive is to reply "Meishin Expressway."

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The Red Room curse -

The curse of the red room is a modern urban legend that began in an internet animation. The tale goes that a red pop-up suddenly appears on the victim's computer screen with the words "Do you like the red room?" The pop-up can't be closed, and soon the whole screen becomes red.

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The Red Room curse -

Eventually, the red screen is filled with the names of the curse's prior victims. There's nothing that can be done to escape it, and the new victim is violently killed, their room painted red with their blood. The internet story gained notoriety when an 11-year-old girl murdered her classmate in 2004 and it was revealed that she was influenced by the Red Room animation.

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Jinmenken -

The story of Jinmenken is far more terrifying than Stephen King's 'Cujo.' This supernatural hound is said to have the head of a man, and can run faster than most cars. Varying versions say Jinmenken came to be after a science experiment went wrong, or that it is the combined ghost of a man and his dog who were killed while walking at night.

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Jinmenken -

Jinmenken has supposedly been spotted wandering dark roads at night and digging through trash. It prefers to be left alone, as it will tell you with its human voice...

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Kisaragi Station -

The story of Kisaragi Station started on the Japanese message board 2channel in 2004. A poster relayed the story in real time, alleging that she had gotten on the train she takes to and from work every day, but this time it didn't stop at any of the usual stations. After being stuck on the moving train for an hour, she found herself at Kisaragi Station. This was not on the train's route and she'd never heard of it. She got off alone to investigate and the train left.

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Kisaragi Station -

The poster couldn't find another living soul and no maps or internet searches could find her location, even when assisted by other members on the message board. She began to walk along the track in search of life and started to hear the beat of a drum. Terrified, she followed the track into a dark tunnel and stumbled out the other side. She wrote that she ran into a man who seemed friendly and offered her a ride. Considering her lack of options, she accepted. This was the last update she provided and she was never seen or heard from again.

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Maruoka Castle -

Maruoka Castle is one of the oldest standing castles left in Japan. It's also the site of a terrible legend. When the castle was built during the 16th century, one of the walls kept crumbling and collapsing no matter how many times they rebuilt it. During this time, hitobashira was still practiced. It was a form of human sacrifice in which people would be walled up or buried in the foundations of a building, sacrificing their lives to the gods in the hopes of receiving protection against natural disasters and bad fortune in return.

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Maruoka Castle -

One of the most famous stories of hitobashira in Japan is believed to have occurred at Maruoka Castle. To fix the wall that wouldn't stay standing, the castle's lord decided to offer a sacrifice. A one-eyed peasant woman named Oshizu was selected, and she agreed on the condition that her sons would be made samurai. The lord agreed and she was buried alive under the central pillar of the castle's keep. However. the lord didn't keep his promise. The moat started to overflow with rain every spring following her death, and the locals believed that it was caused by the tears of Oshizu's sorrow.

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Howling Inunaki Tunnel -

Inunaki is said to be an abandoned village located somewhere in the rural Fukuoka Prefecture, although no one really knows if it exists. The legend says that it can only be entered by the Howling Inunaki Tunnel, which leads you to an evil place that doesn't exist on any maps.

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Howling Inunaki Tunnel -

Those who enter Inunaki are destined to die a terrible, painful death. The existence of the supernatural village is questionable, but the Inunaki Tunnel is real. It's not surprising that it became the stuff of legends, as a brutal murder was committed there in 1988. A group of teenagers kidnapped and tortured a 20-year-old in the tunnel before burning him alive. It's said to be the most haunted tunnel in Japan, and the entrance has been bricked up, but ghastly screams can still be heard from inside.

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Kunekune -

The Kunekune is a humanoid creature with a flowing white body that moves like paper or fabric. In fact, the name Kunekune means "wriggling body" in Japanese. The creature is usually spotted in fields at lunchtime on hot summer days.

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Kunekune -

Kunekune can only be seen from a distance. Those who claim to have spotted it say that they see its undulating form moving through the fields, while nearby farmers seem not to notice its presence. Some versions of the story say that those who try to look at Kunekune up close will go insane. Some believe the creepy figure was merely inspired by the common scarecrow.

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Kotoribako -

The kotoribako is a mysterious wooden puzzle box imbued with deadly supernatural powers. Such boxes are decorated in elaborate patterns and have no obvious mechanism to open them (although opening them is not advisable anyway). A kotoribako is a sort of weapon, built with a potent evil and intention to harm those who come across it, although there is usually a specific target.

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Kotoribako -

The kotoribako is usually made to target children or those who can bear children. Those who are exposed to it, either by touching it or even being in its presence for more than 24 hours, will die a gruesome death. The victims have their organs shredded from the inside.

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Hasshaku-sama -

The legend of Hasshaku-sama also had its start on the message board 2channel. Hasshaku-sama is said to be an exceptionally tall, thin woman, towering at almost 8 feet (2.4 m) in height, and has a terrifying laugh that makes a "popopo” sound.

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Hasshaku-sama -

Hasshaku-sama appears just once every 10 years to find a victim. She becomes enthralled with a man and follows him, trying to lure him to her by taking on the faces of his loved ones. Those she chooses are usually dead within a matter of days.

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Kuchisake-onna -

The legend of Kuchisake-onna is perhaps the most famous of Japan's urban legends. Kuchisake-onna, or "the slit-mouthed woman," appears as a beautiful woman standing on the road at night, wearing a mask over her mouth. If you come across her, she'll ask you if you think she's beautiful.

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Kuchisake-onna -

If you answer "no," she will kill you immediately with a pair of scissors she is carrying. If you answer "yes," she removes her mask to reveal the gaping wounds on her face where she has been cut from ear to ear, and she will cut you the same 'smile.' Apparently the only way to escape the situation unharmed is to tell her that she simply looks OK.

Sources: (Japan Travel) (Nippon) (Dark Horror Tales)

See also: Matsuri: The traditional festivals of Japan

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