I believe Japanese urban Legends/creepypastas have a unique attraction that draws on people’s deep fears. Would you agree with that?

Here, I will introduce my TOP 10, which I found the scariest of them all!

Hasshaku-sama (Hachishakusama/八尺様), also known as “Eight Feet Tall”, is a popular character in Japanese urban legends. She first emerged as a creepypasta story on the Japanese message board 2channel (often shortened as 2chan).

A boy went to his grandparents’ house where he encountered an abnormally tall woman over 2 metres, Hasshaku-sama (Hachishakusama), who is known to stalk and prey on children. The legend says that once you’ve got a liking from Hachishakusama, you would be taken away and killed in a few days…

When I discovered the Hasshaku-sama (Hachishakusama) story for the first time, I was really scared. I have listened to it many times, but this impression has never changed and provided a fresh scare every time!

This story is a masterpiece of Japanese urban legends. I would strongly recommend that if you haven’t tried it yet.

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Kisaragi station (きさらぎ駅) is a Japanese urban legend/creepypasta which also originates from 2chan.

The story starts with a post from a user on 2chan, Hasumi, claiming that she was arriving at a station named Kisaragi. It turned out that Kisaragi station couldn’t be found on a Japanese map, and she was getting involved in some bizarre events.

Would she be able to return to the original world?
Don’t miss out on this classic Japanese urban legend. The story is told in a thread-based format, which gives an even more realistic sense of impending horror and scares.

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Kunekune (くねくね) is a ghost type of Japanese urban legend/character in the story.

Kunekune, as a word itself, is a type of Japanese onomatopoeia meaning “to waggle” or “to twist”. As the word suggests, Kunekune is a tall, slender figure, white as paper or fabric, writhing and twisting in a seemingly endless dance.

Several sightings have been posted on the internet, but the common denominator is that Kunekune has been seen in rural rice fields during the summer and… that it drives those who see it insane.

Most of Kunekune’s creepypastas are short, but the horrors are very deep. This is a good quick Japanese urban legend to experience, I would say!

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Agaribito (アガリビト) is a Japanese character/term for a group of people in deep mountains. They first appeared in a creepypasta story on 2chan again.

A boy (who wrote this story on 2chan) went to his grandma’s house in the countryside, where he encountered people called “Agaribito” in the deep mountains. After escaping from the horrific experience, the grandma also shared her own strange experiences with Agaribito in the past…

To share a little-known fact, do you know that 2/3 of Japanese land is forest and mountain? As I have grown up in Japan surrounded by nature close, I feel that this urban legend involves the threat and mystery of nature in Japan, which makes this urban legend something special!

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Kotoribako (コトリバコ/子取り箱) is a Japanese urban legend of a cursed box. The story was also posted on 2chan.

One girl in the group found a crafted wooden box from a barn. It turned out that this box was called “Kotoribako,” which curses and kills the owner or their loved ones by inflicting illness or accidents. They managed to contain the situation but were later informed about how the box was made and its bloody history…

At first, I thought that this would be a classic “don’t open it otherwise…’ type of urban legend, but things got darker and darker as the story went on when you could see the dark side of insidious relationships in rural Japan.

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Kankandara (姦姦蛇螺/かんかんだら) is a ghost type of Japanese urban legend/term to refer to the female monster in the story. This story again was posted on 2chan.

A boy accidentally entered a prohibited area of the local forest to test his courage with his friends. Then, they encountered a monstrous woman called “Kankandara,” who had six arms, and the lower half of her body took the form of a giant snake.

They managed to escape from the monstrous creature, but then they learned the sealed truth of the former village in the past…

In my opinion, the thrill of being chased by an unknown monster stirs a deep sense of fear throughout the story. Also, at the end of this creepypasta story, it was mentioned that the place where the Kankandara is kept is regularly moved. So it will be like an endless Japanese urban legend considering that the monster might still be sealed up somewhere in the mountains of Japan.

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Hanako-san (Hanako of the toilet/トイレの花子さん) is one of the most famous characters in Japanese urban legends. There are several variations, but the most popular one goes like this.

In a toilet on the third floor of a school building, you knock three times on the third door and ask, ‘Is Hanako-san there?’ A faint voice replies, ‘Yes’ from the private room. If you open that door, a girl with a red skirt and bob-cut hair drags you into the toilet…

It is an urban legend that has been told since 1950 and has terrorised children all over Japan to this day. Of course, I was one of them, as I couldn’t go to the school toilet for this. If you haven’t heard of it, I would like you to experience this simple but deeply terrifying creepypasta as well!

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Aka Manto (Red Cloak/Red Cape/赤マント) is s chilling Japanese urban legend that preys on children. Similar to Hanako-san, there are some variations, but the most famous story goes like this.

Aka Manto’s question to those using the school toilet: “Red paper or blue paper?” Choosing red supposedly leads to being stabbed by a knife and your whole body stained red by the spurting blood, while blue results in having your blood drained out of your body so that you turn pale. In some variations, there’s no escape – any answer leads to a deadly outcome…

This urban legend is said to be old, dating back to around 1940. Like the Hanako-san story, this struck fear in many children. Now, you can guess why Japanese children cannot go to the toilet. I have already told you two toilet creepypastas!

↓For a deeper dive, check this article!

Kuchisake-Onna (The Slit-Mouthed Woman/口裂け女) is a well-known and terrifying figure in Japanese urban legends. She appears as a beautiful woman, often wearing a mask or other disguises. But the mask hides a horrific secret – a grotesquely large mouth with slits on both sides that splits her face.

Kuchisake-Onna approaches people (especially children) while wearing a mask and asks them, “Am I pretty?”
If they say yes, she reveals her face, saying, “Am I still?” If they say no, she slashes their mouth open with scissors to resemble her own…

In 1978-79, this story was so popular throughout the country that all of Japan believed it and caused a huge panic for some time. While there are numerous degrees of scariness in Japanese creepypastas, none may have had as much impact on people’s real lives as this story.

Teke Teke (テケテケ) is a classic creepypasta in Japanese urban legends. There are some variations, but it’s commonly a haunting story about a vengeful spirit with a distinct way of getting around.

A high school boy, leaving the school building to go home, saw a beautiful girl smiling at him from the window. But then he realised that the girl had no lower body.
The moment he realised this, the girl leapt out of the window frame. She came towards him at great speed, moving only her elbows, which sounded like “Teke teke teke teke.”…….

The scary part of this urban legend is that Teke Teke will appear to anyone who hears it within three days. I don’t know if reading this article counts, but be prepared!

Alright, I’ve shared my top 10 Japanese urban legends/creepypastas here. How did you find them? I hope you have discovered some new stories (or at least new information) and made your favourite as well.

I’ve got a podcast channel, “Japan makes me scared”, which also covers some Japanese urban legends/creepypastas as well as other horror and scary stories from Japan. It is available on almost all popular podcast platforms, so please check it out if you would!