Yuki-Kitsune, the Snow Fox

Minokichi is a young boy who lives on a hillside farm in Shirakawa-go.  Every day he leaves his slant-roofed house to tread over a mile to go to school in the village. All the farmhouse roofs are steep to help them withstand the copious amounts of snow Shirakawa-go receives every year.  However, because they live so high up in the mountains, snow storms can spring up unexpectedly, quickly dropping several inches of snow. Knowing this, Minckichi’s father ensures his son always has some essential survival tools in his backpack.

Today is such a day. On his way home, the wind rises, and the sky begins dropping large snowflakes. Minokichi has just started his journey and still has a long to go, but visibility is fading fast.   The wind is causing him to pull his jacket up tightly about his neck.  He’s alone on the trail with no one to ask for help. The wind buffets him. Although his heart is beating hard, Minchichi fights to remain calm as he seeks a place of safety to wait out the storm. He shields his eyes and can barely make out a hut through the raging wind and snow.

Nevertheless, he struggles through the deeping drifts to make his way to it. Before entering the three-foot-tall hut, Minchichi looks up to try and mark his bearings. A full moon peeking in and out through the breaks in the clouds.

Throwing back a weighted flap that covers the entrance, he ducks inside. The sound of the storm is quickly reduced as the inside is lined with loose animal fur. The hut is round, with a dirt floor and a chimney hole in the center of the roof. Minchichi doesn’t see a firepit but a small circle of stones surrounded by small paw prints. Surprised, he decides to think about them later and darts out to gather some firewood. Minchichi quickly begins to build a fire. First, he breaks some large dry branches with his knee and puts them on one side. Next, he places several small twigs in the center of the stones and uses a piece of paper from his backpack and a stick match to get it going. Once it is burning, Minchichi places some of the larger pieces on top. He rubs his hands over the flames. Oh, it feels so warm and good. After a while, he opens his jacket, leans back on his pack and falls asleep.

Minchichi feels cold and is shivering as he stirs from his slumber. He rolls over to see if the door flap is open and is startled to see a figure in the hut. At first, Minchichi thinks there is an animal in the room, for his eyes are blurry with sleep. But after blinking a few times, he sees by the light of the dying embers that it’s a woman.

“Be still, boy, for you are nearly frozen.  Let me warm you.”

Minchichi now sees that she is very beautiful with long black, shiny hair. Her complexion is white, but her lips are a ruby red, and she has striking deep violet eyes. She is dressed in a snow-white kimono that does not seem thick enough for the weather. As the mysterious woman lies beside Minchichi, she wraps her long silky hair around him and says, “You are a most beautiful child.”  She caresses his face with ice-cold hands and brings her mouth close to his. Minchichi is starting to feel light-headed and weak as she moves closer still.

“Listen to me, my handsome young man, I find you most attractive, and therefore I shall not kill you today. However, if you ever mention this again, I will most assuredly kill you. Now sleep.” 

When Minchichi awakens, he bolts up with fear and gasping for air.  He swiftly looks around the hut and sees it is empty except for himself. “It must have been a nightmare,” he thinks, calming down. When he throws back the flap, he sees several inches of snow have fallen. There aren’t any tracks around the hut. Now convinced more than ever it was just a dream, he makes his way home and never tells anyone about it.

It is 1928, and the silk industry in Japan is booming. Minchichi is now a grown man working for a branch of a large import-export business in the city of Takayama. He has been made branch manager because of his knowledge of silkworms that he obtained as a youth on his father’s farm

One day as Minchichi is leaving work, he meets a beautiful young girl walking his way. She is modestly dressed all in white, with her face partially veiled. He thought he saw recognition in her violet eyes when she glanced at him.

“Pardon me, miss, but do I know you?” Minchichi feels he has met her before but can’t recall where.

The girl replied, “I don’t see how that could be, as I’ve just arrived here today.”

“Oh, really? Where do you come from, and what brings you to Takayama?”

“I come from a place in the forest of Shirakawa-go and have come here to find work, perhaps as a servant. I have no family here, so I need money to survive.” Minchichi’s heart is filled with compassion for the girl as she brings to mind that of a lost little girl that doesn’t know her way home.

“I beg your pardon, young miss, but what is your name?” She drops her veil and says, “I’m Yuki.”

“It is my pleasure to meet you, Yuki. My name is Minchichi, and I’m the manager of this building. I have a small but adequate apartment and need someone to clean and cook. I would be most delighted if you would accept the offer. There’s a small spare room that you can use if you do.” Minchichi can’t tear his eyes from her face, for her beauty is astonishing. He’s never seen anyone like her before and is quite sure that he has already fallen in love. Yuki smiles and accepts.

Not long after that, Minchichi admits his love to Yuki, and she does the same. The two soon wed. Minchichi is so happy with his new bride that he grants her everything. The one thing Yuki keeps bringing up is how much she misses Shirakawa-go and her forest home. Minchichi tells her he still owns the family home, and they can move there if she wishes. Yuki casts her eyes to the floor and says, “But, my love, it is so far from your work.”                                    “Please do not worry. All that matters is that it makes you happy. I can take the bus, so it is not a bother.” 

The couple move there and have four beautifully fair-skinned children, two boys, and two girls, over the next few years. The girls have deep violet eyes like their mother.

Minchichi is exceptionally happy with Yuki.  One day she requests that she would like to be able to return to her family home one night a month.

She explains, “My mother was very proud of her home and always ensured that it would be presentable if company should come. So I promised her I would keep it up after they were gone. So please, husband, it will take only one day and night, and I choose the night of the full moon.”

Minchichi saw no harm in her wish and promised to take good care of their children while she was gone. However, he noticed that when she returned the following day, she always seemed to glow as if rejuvenated.

As the years passed and Minchichi grew older, Yuki seemed to remain her youthful self. Then, one night while Yuki was sewing, Minchichi recalled when he first saw her.

“Wife,” he said, “I’ve always felt we had met before, and now I recall a night from my youth.  I was once lost in a snowstorm when I encountered a beautiful woman who looked much like you! She wore a snow white kimono and had stunning violet eyes.” Yuki flew into a rage.

“Yes!  I am that woman!   I told you never to mention that night again, or I will kill you!   However, for the sake of our children, I will spare you again. But if you ever harm them, I will hear of it and kill you!”

Minchichi watches his beloved wife transform into a nine-tailed fox and disappear as if in a dream.

Minchichi raised his four children but was heartbroken and missed Yuki every day of his life. He requested a small statue of a nine-tail fox be placed on his grave when he died.  It is said that when it is snowing, and the moon is full, the spirit of a fox can be seen by his grave.