Kinojō, the Oni's Castle

What is there

On a 400-metre summit north of Sōja, a fortress of the seventh century rings the hilltop with stone walls and earth ramparts nearly three kilometres round, built in the Korean manner when the court feared an invasion from the continent. A gate has been rebuilt in timber on the western side, a path follows the walls past the sluices and the corners, and a visitor centre at the trailhead explains the digs. The view takes in the whole plain to the sea. There is no bus; the road up is by car or taxi.

Why here

Long before the archaeologists, the people of the plain knew the ruin as the castle of Ura, the oni from across the sea who raided their villages, and the rivers and shrines below carry the names of his fight with Prince Kibitsuhiko: the river that ran with his blood, the shrine where the arrows met in the air. The shrine where his head is buried is half an hour away. The oni of the fortress is the type the article begins with.

Yokai you will meet

• Oni 鬼 — The hilltop fortress the tale gives to the oni Ura, above the plain where he fought the prince.

Getting there

Sōja Station (JR Hakubi Line). Taxi about 20 to 30 minutes to the visitor centre; about 5 km on foot from Hattori station.

• Open in Google Maps (external link)
• Open in OpenStreetMap (external link)
• Official site (external link)