Obariyon

Obariyon
Obariyon (オバリヨン) also known as Onbu-obake is a type of Japanese Yōkai known to dwell within forests and moutainous regions.
They are nocturnal creatures, said at times to be vageuly humanoid, though appearance have varied as they always appear from behind and in dim light. Some say they are reminiscant of an oversized child, others say they are almost featureless. However, the size of the creature is hard to determine, as they have the ability to increase both their mass and weight.
If you should run into one of these creatures, it will be at night as they are nocturnal, and they only go after isoloated travellers. They will jump onto your back and say ‘obusaritei‘ (I want a piggy back) and through the whole experience they will increase their weight until you become pinned to the floor underneath them.
Apparently, they won’t kill you, but will remain ontop of you until they become distracted or bored.
There is a tale associated with this creature and an old man who runs into a Obariyon. The story goes that this man was travlelling in the mountains when suddenyl someone cried out they wanted a piggy back, the old man being spooked began to flee. However, the voice kept up with his pace, eventually the voice saying he was in trouble and couldn’t walk.
Now the old man, being a kind hearted person, took pity and said the voice could climb onto his back and he quickly felt the great weight settle there before he continued on his journey. Finally, once he retunred to his home, and took the weight of his shoulders, he didn’t find a creature. Instead, he found a pot full of gold nuggets and lived out the rest of his life in wealth.1
Footnotes
1. Yoda, H & Alt, M. (2008) “Yokai Attack: The Japanese Monster Survival Guide” Tokyo: Kodansha International Ltd.
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