TALES OF TERROR

Aka Manto A.K.A The Red Cloak

Aka Manto (Red Cape) is a Japanese urban legend about a malicious spirit who haunts public and school toilets, who will ask you if you want red paper or blue paper. In some versions, he will ask you if you want a red or blue cape. Often described as a beautiful man in life and hounded constantly by admirers, he now wears a mask to hide his face.

The legend

If you are sitting on the toilet (usually the last stall), a mysterious voice will ask you if you want red paper or blue paper. If you answer red paper, you will be sliced apart until your clothes are stained red. If you choose blue paper, you will be strangled until your face turns blue. Any attempt to outsmart Aka Manto by asking for a different color will result in you being dragged to the Netherworld. The only correct answer is to say no paper and he will leave you alone.[1]

Alternate versions

Aka Manto is sometimes referred to as Aoi Manto (Blue Cape).

Sometimes the voice will ask you if you want a cape rather than paper. If you agree to red, the skin on your back is ripped off to resemble a red cape. If you ask for blue, all the blood is drained from your body.

One popular version of the story changes the choice from red paper to a red vest:

A police man and woman were called to a school after a student reported hearing a male voice in the girl's bathroom. The police woman went to the bathroom while her male partner waited outside. When inside the stall a voice asked "Shall we put on the red vest?" The police man outside, who was listening at the door, heard his partner answer "Yes". A sudden scream and loud thud followed. When the policeman opened the bathroom door, he found the police woman decapitated. Her blood had soaked into her vest, turning it red.[2]

Another version of the story says that if you ask for yellow cloak, you have your head forced into the toilet you've just used.