Ao Bozu are a type of spirit found in Japanese mythology, part of the massive family known as yokai. While a distinct entity in its own right, the creature has elements of creatures found in many other cultures, such as the ogre and cyclops.
Ao Bozu feature in many Japanese folk tale and art but are not as widely known as other yokai (such as the infamous Oni and Kitsune) outside of their native folklore.
History[]
Ao Bozu are dangerous yokai depicted as blue-skinned humanoids with a single eye, they tend to live in abandoned homes or lonely roads and often hunt down and devour children who play in the fields, they also like to engage people in sumo matches on lonely roads but trick them into thinking they may have an easy win by appearing as small as children, only to quickly turn the tables on the victim and crush them with their superior strength and true size.
In other tales, the monsters will appear before women and ask if she wants to be hanged by her neck. If the woman says no, the creature will vanish without trace. But if she tries to ignore the yokai, it will pounce upon her and hang her.