Kuchisake Onna

 

 

ORIGIN

She can be found in Japanese culture.

 

FIRST SIGHTED/RECORDED

There have been rumours of sightings since 1979 around the Nagasaki Prefecture. Although this is probably when the Ghost became well known, the legend is said to have originated in the Heion period (794 - 1185)

 

APPEARANCE

Her main feature has to be her mouth that has been slit from ear to ear. Depending on the region where you hear the legend from, she can either be horribly disfigured or an extremely beautiful woman with a scar on her face. Either way, she is always seen to be wearing a surgical mask, concealing her mouth.

 

GENDER

Female

 

ALSO KNOWN AS

Slit Mouthed Woman

 

REPELLED BY

She isn't necessarily repelled by anything as such and there doesn't seem to be a way to kill her, but there are ways in which you can escape her. When she asks you her question, reply with "You are average". This will confuse her and cause her to be lost in though, giving you a chance to escape. You can also reply with "Is the child pretty?" which will again confuse her and cause her to leave. If you tell her that you have a previous engagement, she will pardon her manners and excuse herself. Throwing fruit or candies on the floor will distract her as she will pick them up.

 

MAGICAL POWERS/SKILLS

She has no magical powers but is filled with a rage that enables her to kill at will. She will kill her victims with a pair of scissors.

 

HISTORY/ABOUT

She is said to have been the wife of a Samurai who lived hundreds of years ago. She was said to have been extremely vain and her husband, who was a very jealous man, began to accuse her of cheating on him. He flew into a rage one day and slit her mouth from ear to ear then said to her "Who will think you're beautiful now?". She died not long after. This led her to become a Yokai (vengeful spirit).

 

CAN BE FOUND

In many regions within Japan. She can especially be found on a foggy night.

 

TALES

It is said that if a child is walking alone at night, they may encounter a woman in a surgical mask. If she says "Watashi kirei?" (Am I beautiful?), and the child answers NO, then she will kill them with a pair of scissors that she carries. If the child replies with YES, then she will reveal her face and ask "How about now?". If the child says NO, she will cut them in half. If they say YES, then she will cut their mouth in the same way as hers. Some believe this to be a tale that was told to children so that they wouldn't stay out late at night. When the tale became popular, there was so much panic that the police actually increased their patrols. Wearing surgical masks in Japan is not uncommon, when they have a cold or illness, they will cover their mouths out of respect for others.

 

ANY SIGHTINGS?

There have been numerous sightings of her since 1979. Some of these have been caught on both camera and video. Whether or not they are real is really up to you to decide.

 

SIMILAR CREATURES

Bloody Mary, La Llorona, Teke Teke, Onryo