Faculty of Design

Illustration

Haru Tai

Something Sinister Below

The Japanese army captured many POW (prisoners of war) and subjected soldiers to inhumane treatment, which includes starvation, beatings, and more. The yokai is Jubokko, they were once normal trees; but the vast amounts of human blood absorbed through their roots transformed them into yōkai. Jubokko wait for unsuspecting humans to pass underneath their branches. When somebody gets close enough, they attack, snatching their prey with long, jagged, finger-like branches, and hoisting it into their boughs.