Nue

Kuniyoshi Utagawa, Taiba (The End), 1852. The print depicts a nue descending upon the Imperial palace in a black cloud

A nue (鵺) is a legendary creature found in Japanese folklore. It has the head of a monkey, the body of a tanuki, the legs of a tiger, and a snake instead of a tail. A nue can also transform into a black cloud and fly around. Due to its appearance, it is sometimes referred to as a Japanese chimera.

Nue are bringers of misfortune and illness. According to The Tale of the Heike, the Emperor of Japan became sick after a nue took up residence atop his palace in the summer of 1153. After the samurai Minamoto no Yorimasa killed the creature, the emperor recovered.

Trivia

• In the video game Breath of Fire III, The very first boss in game is a Nue who is terrorizing the "starter town"
• In the MMORPG, Final Fantasy XI, there is a notorious monster named Nue that is in the form of a tiger.
• Eating a nue is thought to cure hiccups.
• Nue are also a type of nocturnal blackbird native to Japan. They, too, are thought to bring bad luck.
• In the anime OVA, Karas, Nue is a mystical creature in human form sent to Shinjuku , Japan to defeat Eko.
• In the PS2 video game Genji: Dawn of the Samurai Nue is a boss at the Migoyi temple.
• The Japanese band Kagrra, has an album titled "Nue", containing the track "Nue no Naku Koro" (鵺の哭く頃, When the Nue Cries). The avex artist Tomiko Van similarly has a song called "Nue no Naku Yoru" (鵺の鳴く夜, The Night when the Nue Cries)
• The PS2 roleplaying game Shin Megami Tensei: Lucifer's Call has Nue as one of the kinds of monsters the player can fight, recruit or even create by fusing other monsters together.
• In the anime and manga series Bleach, Shinigami Abarai Renji uses a sword (zanpakuto) named Zabimaru, which materializes into the from of a white nue.