Character Relationship Map: Onibaba

Characters

• Woman (played by Nobuko Otowa) — protagonist

  An older woman living in reed fields with her daughter-in-law. She kills and robs wandering soldiers to trade for food, and initially tries to seduce the veteran Hachi to keep her daughter-in-law's as...

• Young Woman (played by Jitsuko Yoshimura) — protagonist

  The older woman's daughter-in-law and widow of Kishi. Initially warned to stay away from Hachi, she secretly meets him for sex every night. She is frightened by the older woman wearing a stolen mask b...

• Hachi (played by Kei Satō) — supporting

  A veteran neighbor who returns from war. He informs the women that her husband deserted and was killed. He develops a romantic and sexual relationship with the younger woman, secretly meeting her at n...

• The Samurai (played by Jūkichi Uno) — supporting

  A lost, masked samurai who demands guidance out of the reed field. He claims the mask protects his handsome face, but is actually severely disfigured. He is tricked by the older woman into falling int...

• Ushi (played by Taiji Tonoyama) — supporting

  A local merchant who trades food for the stolen armor and weapons brought by the two women. He provides them with war updates and attempts to proposition the older woman, who rejects him.

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Ushi → Young Woman (Professional Trade Partner) — Young Woman participates in the household's dealings with Ushi.

  Ushi trades food for the armor and weapons brought by both women.

• Ushi → Woman (Professional Merchant) — Ushi conducts the women's essential barter transactions.

  Woman and Young Woman take stolen armor and weapons to Ushi and trade them for food.

• Woman → Hachi (Romantic Rejected Suitor) — Woman's failed seduction intensifies her jealousy toward Young Woman.

  Woman tries to seduce Hachi, but he coldly rebuffs her.

• Young Woman → Hachi (Romantic Lovers) — Their secret sexual relationship drives the central domestic conflict.

  Young Woman is seduced by Hachi and sneaks out every night to his hut for sex.

• Woman → Young Woman (Family Mother-in-law) — They are family members whose dependence becomes increasingly hostile.

  The plot identifies Young Woman as Woman's daughter-in-law, living with her in the reed fields.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Hachi → The Samurai (Unknown Unrelated Combatant) — Both are armed men shaped by the war, but no direct encounter is shown.

  The plot presents Hachi as a returning veteran and The Samurai as a separate lost warrior encountered by Woman.

• Woman → The Samurai (Conflict Killer) — Woman deliberately kills the samurai to obtain his possessions.

  Woman tricks the lost masked samurai into plunging into the pit where the women dispose of their victims.

Story Analysis

In a war-ravaged landscape, survival, desire, jealousy, and supernatural punishment destroy the bond between two women.

Plot Progression

1. Survival Among The Reeds — Woman and Young Woman survive by ambushing soldiers and trading their equipment for food. The war creates a brutal economic world around their hidden pit.
2. Hachi Returns With Loss — Hachi returns from war and reports the death of the woman's son and Young Woman's husband. His return brings grief, blame, and a new sexual attraction.
3. Desire And Jealousy — Young Woman begins a secret affair with Hachi despite Woman's warning. Woman's jealousy and fear of losing her survival partner drive her failed seduction and desperate plea.
4. The Masked Deception — Woman kills a lost masked samurai and steals his Hannya mask. She uses the mask and robes to frighten Young Woman away from Hachi.
5. Rain And Ruin — Hachi is killed while confronting a food thief, and the rain makes the mask impossible to remove. Young Woman breaks it away, sees Woman's disfigured face, and flees over the pit.