Yokai of the Week - Kappa

Out of all the hundreds and hundreds of yokai, kappa are probably the most well known. They resemble bipedal turtle men (like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and live in and around water. They have an appetite for the shirikodama located in colons, which they get by plunging their fist through the rear end of any unfortunate animal or person. They have a water-filled dish on top of their head from which they derive their strength. Kappa, although capable of great violence, are polite creatures (in fact most yokai are), so one way of outsmarting them is by bowing deeply and respectfully, whereby they will have to return the gesture and the water will pour out of their dish, leaving them weak. They also have a penchant for cucumbers.