Freaky Folklore: Aka Manto
Aka Manto (赤マント, 'Red Cloak') is a masked Japanese yōkai who is known to haunt female public or school toilets. Depending on the legend you hear, he can be known to specifically haunt the last stall in said toilets.
Other Names Include:
Red Cape, Red Vest, Akai-Kami-Aoi-Kami (赤い紙青い紙, 'Red Paper, Blue Paper'), or occasionally Aoi Manto (青マント, 'Blue Cloak')
Appearance:
Aka Manto is said to wear a flowing red cloak and a mask to cover his face. Those who have seen beneath the mask claim that he is rather charming and handsome underneath it.
Though Manto now translates to 'cape' or 'cloak', during the period of its origin, it actually referred to a type of short and sleeveless kimono. Because of this, the appearance of Aka Manto has changed frequently throughout the years.
Origin:
Author and Folklorist Matthew Meyer has claimed to find records of Aka Manto dating back to the 1930s.
Whilst is it obviously impossible to say exactly where the story came from, the themes of the tale seem to provide a solid explanation for its continued popularity. It plays on the themes of anxiety that run through young students, taking them to an isolated location, providing them with impossible to answer question and then punishing them regardless of their answer.
Legend:
As with most urban legends, Aka Manto's story has dozens upon dozens of different variations to it. However, the following is the most common pattern the stories follow...
It was late one evening when a lone student finds herself in desperate need of the toilet. The nearest bathroom she could find was the one that all other students avoided. It was old and poorly kept, not to mention the rumours about it being haunted. But desperate times call for desperate measures, and she couldn't risk the walk to another bathroom so she conceded.
She finishes her business and goes to reach for the toilet paper, only to find that there isn't any left. Suddenly, a strange voice calls out to her "red paper or blue paper?" In her panic, she answers the voice "red paper." A moment passes before the student is violently stabbed and slashed, drenching her body in so much blood that it appears as though she is wearing a red cloak.
As time passes, the tale of the student's untimely demise became its own form of legend. One day, another student finds herself in a similar situation and ends up using the 'haunted' bathroom. Sure enough, a mysterious voice pipes up to ask them "red paper or blue paper?" The student remembers what she had heard about the last victim and confidently replies "blue paper." As a moment of silence passes, the girl believes she has outsmarted Aka Manto. Until, all at once, all of the blood is sucked from her body, leaving her blue-faced on the floor.
Of course, as previously mentioned, the variations of this tale come in multitudes. For example, in some tales, Aka Manto is the ghostly figure described above. However, others claim that he is a masked serial killer, hiding in the neighbouring stall.
Another point of debate is the method by which the students meet their fate. In some cases, choosing the red paper leads to your skin being entirely flayed off and left to hang from your back like a red cloak. Equally, in other cases, choosing blue paper can lead to you being strangled to death until you are blue in the face.
Ways to escape Aka Manto are also up for debate, including whether escape is even possible at all. Some tales tell of students shouting "yellow paper!" In an attempt to confuse the spirit, only to be drowned in the toilet bowl. Others say that choosing any colour other than red or blue will result in you being dragged to hell.
Some students claim to have tried taking their own toilet paper in to the stall with them, only to find that is has disappeared when they go to use it.
The only way that a student has supposedly managed to escape the grasp of Aka Manto is by ignoring or rejecting his offer, giving you time to get away.
Media:
The most popular depiction of Aka Manto in media comes from his own video game by the same name. Developed by horror game studio Chilla's Art, the 2019 game revolves entirely around the legend.
Aka Manto's legend has also inspired other video games, including the enemy "Killer Mantle" from the 2003 game Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow. He is also mentioned multiple times within the Legend of Zelda franchise, as a character that appears in a lavatory at night and asks the player for paper or murmurs threatening things to them.
