Watanabe no Tsuna and the Demon of Rashomon Gate

Watanabe no Tsuna 渡邊綱 (953–1025) was a historical warrior who became associated in many legends with fighting monsters and demons. His most famous battle was with Ibaraki Dōji 茨木童子, a demon who hid in the main gate of Kyoto, the Rashomon, and attacked anyone passing through. Watanabe challenges the demon, and defeats him by severing his arm, which he keeps as a trophy. A few days later, a woman claiming to be Watanabe’s aunt comes to visit, and asks to hear the tale and to see the demon’s arm. When the warrior shows her the arm, she grabs it and escapes, revealing herself to be the demon in disguise. Yoshitoshi’s teacher, Kuniyoshi, did a number of prints of this same subject.