Hasshaku-sama

Hasshaku-sama's origins are unknown, but the earliest known of her appearance comes from an anonymous ghost story that was posted on 26 August 2008, from "洒落にならないほど恐い話を集めてみない？196 (Want to Gather Scary Stories Too Terrifying to Laugh At? 196),^[1]" a Japanese textboard channel called 2channel.^[2][3]

Hasshaku-sama is depicted particularly as an 8 foot tall modern yōkai, ^[2] a gigantic woman with pale skin and a one-piece dress. She is said to always appears as a woman with a hat, and she makes an odd "po po po" sound when she appears.^[1][3]

According to the stories, Hasshaku-sama's is depicted as having varying age and clothing depending on the observer.^[1][4][5] She also seems to frequent isolated regions in the countryside at night (or in the evening), like fields, villages, or mountain roads.

In the story, Hasshaku-sama can be trapped within a specific geographical zone by Jizō statues,^[5] and could only targets young boys and girls, especially kids who enter in the zone.^[1][5] If victims encounter her, they most likely will be cursed by her and won't survive past the next morning.^[1][3] Hiding in a room with protective talismans and mount of salt is the only way to evade her hunt.^[3][1]

The original story is about a high-school boy who often visits his grandparents' house in the countryside during summer vacation and winter break. He once encountered a woman over 2 meters tall who wears a one-piece dress and makes "po po po" sounds when she appears. After the boy told his grandfather, he panicked and told the boy that the entity is called "Hasshaku-sama", named exactly after her 8 foot height, is extremely dangerous and will kill young boys and girls associated with villages or isolated areas. The boy later was taken to a sealed room with protective talismans and mounds of salt. His grandfather told him that he must stay overnight in the room and not open the door, since Hasshaku-sama attempts to kill her victims by mimicking voices and knocking on windows to lure them outside. During the night, the boy hears sounds repeatedly outside the room that mimicked his grandfather's voice. Heeding his grandfather’s earlier advice, he resisted opening the door and waited patiently until morning. With the protection of talismans, he managed to live through Hasshaku-sama's curse and heard from his grandfather that Hasshaku-sama was sealed away. After the boy's grandfather passed away, he heard rumors that the seal of Hasshaku-sama was broken. Before passing away, his grandfather warned him never to return to that place again because Hasshaku-sama might be searching for the boy.^[1][3]

• Slender Man - a modern urban legend that shares similar features with Hasshaku-sama.
• Lady Dimitrescu - a design character from Resident Evil: Village that was inspired by Elizabeth Báthory, Hashaku-sama, and Morticia Addams.^[8]
• Yama-onna - a Japanese female yōkai that shares similar features with Hasshaku-sama.^[1]