Danielle Barbee is a Senior at Bourbon County High School and excited to share her first creative writing piece.

Kuchisake-onna’s Revenge

By: Danielle Barbee

In the 1185’s there was a division of Japanese history. There was a beautiful girl named Kuchisake-onna. Something tragic happened to her one day. What do you think happened to the beauty? Did she get hurt? Did she die? Or did she get her revenge?

It was a blazing  summer day in Heian-kyo, Japan. In the small town where cherry blossom trees grew and very beautiful flowers grew. There  lived a samurai and a beautiful woman. The woman was 29 years old and the man was 30 years old they lived close to each other. One day the beautiful girl went to the market. She wasn’t paying attention of where she was going and she bumped into someone and fell to the ground. The person she bumped into apologized to her. She looked up and saw a handsome man in a black and red samurai suit. The man extended his hand out to the woman and he helped her up.

The woman said, “thank you kind sir for helping me up may I ask you your name?” the man shook his head as a “yes.” Then he spoke “My name is Sanada Yukimura, but you can call me Yuki.”  The samurai spoke again “May I ask what’s your name miss?” the woman  spoke. “My name is Kuchisake-onna.”  Yuki and Kuchisake-onna started to get to know each other. They went on a lot of dates and they started to fall in love with one another. Yuki thought to himself ” She is so beautiful. I would like to marry her so no one will take my love away.”

A few years later, Yuki went to Kuchisake-onna’s house. He heard someone screaming as soon as he went to her house. Yuki showed concern. So he got the courage to draw his sword and ring the doorbell. Kuchisake-onna came out and she was bleeding from her cheek. She had been scratched from her mom beating her. He thought to himself “I need to marry her soon or she will be dead from all the beatings.” His thoughts were interrupted by Kuchisake-onna asking him why is he there. Yuki was still in her doorway. Yuki took Kuchisake-onna by the hand and they ran away from her house. They heard her mother screaming for them to come back.

They kept on running until they reached a trail of cherry blossom trees. They sat down and enjoyed the cherry blossom trees and the starry sky. The breeze was a cool midnight breeze. Yuki looked over to see the love of his life. She was so beautiful under the moonlight Yuki stood up and Kuchisake-onna asked him “What’s wrong?” she looked at him confused. Yuki told her to stand up in a nervous voice. So Kuchisake-onna stood up then Yuki bent down on one knee and took out a wooden box  then he opened it and took out a jade ring. He said, “Miss onna will you do me the honors of being my bride?”

Kuchisake-onna was so happy she started to cry. Then she spoke. “I will be honored to marry you,” she said. They hugged each other then they kissed each other. A few months later, it was Yuki and Kuchisake-onna’s wedding day. Kuchisake-onna wore a white silk kimono robe and a white rose flower crown. Her face was painted white and her lips were painted red. Her soon to be husband wore a black and white kimono.

They were going to get married under the Japanese cherry blossoms. It was time for Kuchisake-onna to walk to her future  husband. She was so excited and happy. The priest told them to say their vows. After they exchanged their vows the priest then said, “You may now kiss the bride.” They have not been happier. Yuki thought thought that this will be forever happiness, but he was wrong. A few years, after they got married Kuchisake -onna was looking more and more beautiful. Yuki had heard some rumors.

Then he got a letter from the president of Tokyo. He read the letter and he was informed that Japan was going  to be under attack soon and he has to join the samurai’s for his country. At first he was hesitant to go until his wife told him that he should go and be a hero and save the country. He told her that he will be gone for a while. She gave him a smile and told him “Go be a hero for me and the country.” The samurai’s facial expression changed from concern to happy, but in his mind he thinks otherwise. The next day, the samari got his stuff together and as he was about to leave he gave his wife a kiss goodbye and left. Months have passed and all Yuki could think of was his wife. The battle for his country was gruesome and a lot of people died. There were dead bodies from both countries on the ground and the dirt soaked in a red liquid. The smell of iron filled the air.

Meanwhile, Kuchisake-onna met a man his name was Jack. He is 32 the same age as Kuchisake-onna. The samari got a bad feeling for leaving her at home. One day, the samurai decided that he should surprise his wife by showing up at the house, but he was the one that got surprised. Yuki saw his wife kissing another man. Yuki was in tears, so he went to his family home and stayed a few nights until he he couldn’t take the pain. Yuki went to a market to buy some alcohol to soothe his pain he was feeling. He was feeling heartbroken, and numb. When he was done drinking, he looked outside and it was raining, so he decided to go home to his wife drunk. He was soaked from the rain and his clothes reeked of alcohol.

When he reached his home he saw his wife kissing, the same person and Yuki’s face was blood red his veins were popping out of his neck he forcefully grabbed his sword and his keys. He unlocked the door and went in full of rage. He took his sword and started to swing it at the man. Yuki swung his sword and hit the man and continued to swing the sword at the man. On the last swing he hit the man’s heart and killed him. Yuki’s heart broke when he heard his wife scream “NO! Jack I love you please don’t leave me.” Yuki was broken and he hated his wife then he shouted at her “Why did you marry me if you love him!” Kuchisake-onna jumped at him yelling and crying. She started to tear up.

She said, “I’m sorry, but you left me for so long.”  Yuki got mad and said, “Who told me to be a hero?” He was so mad that he wanted to hurt her. Kuchisake-onna’s face was full of anger and she said, ” You might have a girlfriend when you went to save the country and I can’t help it that I’m very beautiful to the point every guy wants to date me.” Something in Yuki snapped and he took his sword, pressed it against the corner of her mouth, slit her face from ear to ear, and said, “Who will think your beautiful now”? And Yuki left her sitting there crying with a twisted, bloody grin. The next morning, Yuki went to apologize to his wife for his actions only it was too late he saw his wife sitting in the same position he left her last night. He shook her many times trying to get a response, but nothing then he turned her around to face him only to find a white kimono that has been soaked in her blood and a very gruesome, blood-soaked grin.

He cried and cried, because he never meant to kill her. He just wanted her to be all his. Later that day, he took Kuchisake-onna to a mountain he had a shovel and a stone. Yuki dug a hole for his wife and he put her into the hole. Then he buried his wife and what he wrote on the stone made him cry even more “a loving wife.” Then he went back home. Yuki woke up the next morning to go to the market and he bumped into someone. This girl was 35 the same age as Yuki and she was very pretty.

He quickly apologized to the woman. Then the woman spoke “My name is Suzy.” Yuki then spoke to the woman “My name is Yuki. You are very pretty.” Suzy then laughed and told him that he’s cute and she would like to get to know him more.  A few years later, Yuki and Suzy started to get to know each other and soon they started to date. Suzy asked Yuki if he would marry her and Yuki said yes. A few months later, Suzy and Yuki got married and had two kids. Soon after Yuki thought his life was complete, but he felt empty inside.

Then he started to have nightmares about kuchisake-onna. Yuki thought he was seeing something. It was Kuchisake-onna. She was wearing a surgical mask and a long beige trench coat. He asked her why is she like that. Then he looked in her eyes and saw that they were red and full of hate. Yuki kept apologizing to his ex-wife Kuchisake-onna. Then Kuchisake-onna spoke.

“You did this to me.,” she said. Yuki was shocked. Then he spoke “I was drunk and jealous I didn’t mean to kill you.” Yuki said while crying. “But you did kill me and you seem to forget me real quick.” Kuchisake-onna said coldly. Then she looked behind her and saw a giant, sharp pair of scissors. She grabbed them and looked at her husband with a death look. She then stabbed him. She was smiling as his blood went from his heart and splattered all over Kuchisake-onna.

She took the scissors and walked out of the house. She saw the woman that married her husband and she vanished into the air. Suzy and her kids walked in horrified by what they saw…

…. Friday September 22, 2000….

A woman and her kids went to a park. “Don’t go too far kids. Jacob look after Lucy,” said the mother. “Okay.” said Jacob and Lucy.

Lucy noticed a woman wearing a long beige trench coat with a surgical mask and long black hair. The woman spoke “Am I pretty?” Lucy said “Yes.” Kuchisake-onna ripped off her mask revealing her bloody, twisted, evil grin. Then she spoke again “Am I pretty now?” Lucy was scared, so Lucy screamed for her brother and mother. By the time they got there they saw Lucy bleeding from her cheek. Soon Jacob said, “Mom look the woman with the trench coat did it to Lucy.” The mother looked up and saw the woman.

The mother saw the scissors in her hand with blood on them. The mother told her kids to stay away from that woman. “Mom who is she?” said Jacob and Lucy. “She is Kuchisake-onna.,” responded the mother. “Why do we have to stay away from her?” they asked. The mother explained the story to her kids. “Kuchisake-onna is the spirit that will hurt you when she asks you a question,” said the mother. ” She kills people.” the mother continued ” She even kills children and she will continue to kill people who tell her that she is not pretty or she will make your face look like hers if you say she does look pretty even when she shows her twisted, bloody grin to people. The only way to get away from her is to drop a basket of fruit and nuts in front of her or you tell her that she looks average or so-so.”

She still roams the Japan hating anyone who is married or has been abused. Kuchisake-onna is a very angry woman that has a long giant pair of scissors and she carries them around. The reason for her to carry them around is unknown and the reason why she hurts and kills kids is also unknown.  The legend of the slit mouthed woman still goes on. The legend of the slit mouthed woman never gets old it has been around for years and it will continue to go around. The legend gets passed down to tell to children.

The legend of the slit mouthed woman is about 1200 years old.  Some people say that the reason why she came back from the dead as an evil spirit is because she was the devil’s demon when she returned. Some people say that she came back full of hatred, because the devil wanted to control her spirit to kill her husband for what he has done to her.  Whenever Kuchisake-onna sees a cherry blossom tree she recalls the past of when she and her husband got married. She still has the blood red eyes from the devil….

……..Present day……

A girl named Aimi Akio was getting home from school one day.  Aimi ran into a woman wearing a long, blood-soaked, beige coat. Aimi looked up at the woman and she had long black hair. The little girl had a look of terror on her face. She wanted to run, but her legs wouldn’t let her. She wanted to scream, but she couldn’t open her mouth. The woman looked down at Aimi. Aimi was shaking in fear. she finally found the courage to try and run away, but the woman caught her and she looked at Aimi and asked her “Am I Pretty?…..

The end….. Or is it?