The Magic Word 'Kusuke'

This happened a long, long time ago. One late rainy evening, a girl named Yamato was walking home from the fields. Her path led her past the village cemetery. As Yamato walked, she suddenly heard what sounded like a baby crying. She looked around and saw a child lying on an abandoned grave. She looked closer and realized it wasn’t a child at all, but a large black cat.

Before Yamato could feel frightened, a hoarse, terrifying voice came from the abandoned grave:

"Hey, cat, why are you screeching here?!"

The cat stopped meowing and listened. Yamato hid behind a tree, standing motionless.

"Well, here's the deal," the hoarse voice continued. "On the first clear evening, before the village lanterns are lit, go to the big house with the stone fence. Sit by the gate and start meowing, as pitifully as you can. Make them think it’s a baby crying. And then the child recently born in that house will start sneezing. When he sneezes three times, his soul will fly away, and he will die."

"So, that means," the cat purred, "there’s no saving him once he sneezes three times?"

"No," replied the hoarse voice. "Although you can expect anything from these people. Know this: if the child starts sneezing and someone utters the magic word 'kusuke,' our spell will be broken. Run away then!"

The cat began to cry again, sounding like a baby, jumped off the grave, and disappeared into the darkness.

Yamato stood behind the tree, frozen in fear. She waited until all the sounds around her quieted, then crept out of her hiding place and ran to the village. "What a strange magic word I’ve learned," she thought.

Yamato decided not to tell anyone in the village and waited for the first clear evening. She was determined to save the child who had recently been born in the big house with the stone fence.

From morning till evening, the girl worked in the fields. Finally, the first clear evening arrived. As dusk fell, she approached the house with the stone fence.

"Hey, Yamato, why are you back from the fields so early today?" the master of the house asked in surprise.

"I heard your child is unwell," Yamato replied, "so I decided to come and check on him."

"You’re kind, Yamato! Thank you for your concern," the master said. "Our child is indeed sick."

The mistress came out and invited Yamato inside. Meanwhile, it grew completely dark outside. The lanterns were about to be lit. The cows in the barn began to moo. The street was empty—no one was in sight.

Yamato glanced over the stone fence and saw a black cat sneaking along it—the same cat that had spoken with dark forces at the cemetery on that rainy evening. It crept closer to the house, its eyes gleaming with a sinister blue light. The cat hissed and arched its back. "It’s here," Yamato thought with fear.

The cat came very close, sat by the gate, and began to meow pitifully.

"Oh, what’s that? Look—a cat! But it’s crying just like a baby!" the mistress exclaimed, clutching her child tighter.

"That beast! And it’s black too!" the master shouted, leaning over the stone fence. "Go away! Shoo! Shoo!"

But then the child sneezed.

"Achoo!"

"Kusuke!" Yamato quickly said.

"Achoo!" the child sneezed again.

"Kusuke!" Yamato repeated.

"Achoo!"

"Kusuke!"

As soon as she uttered the magic word for the third time, the black cat stopped meowing, glared at Yamato with malice, and dashed away.

"Ha-ha-ha!" the master and mistress laughed. "What strange words are you saying?"

"Ha-ha-ha!" the child suddenly laughed too.

"Look, your child has recovered!" Yamato exclaimed joyfully. "He’s even laughing!"

Now Yamato could tell them everything she had heard at the cemetery.

"That’s why I came back from the fields early today," she concluded.

"What a terrifying story you’ve told!" the master and mistress exclaimed. "We owe our child’s life to you. From now on, you’ll always be a welcome guest in our home!"

They thanked Yamato, treated her to food, and gave her gifts.

Since then, it is said, a custom appeared on the Ryukyu Islands: whenever a child sneezes, someone must say the magic word "kusuke."

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The Magic Word 'Kusuke'

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