Danzaburou-danuki
is a bake-danuki passed down in stories on Sado Island, particularly in Aikawa and Niigata. In Sado, tanuki were called "mujina (狢)", thus he was also referred to as Danzaburou-mujina (団三郎狢). In the Ukiyo-e, its name was written as 同三狸." Together with the Shibaemon-tanuki of Awaji Island, and the Yashima no Hage-tanuki of Kagawa, they form the "three famous tanuki" of Japan. Legend The supreme commander of the tanuki on Sado Island, most tales of Danzaburou focus on his trickery of humans. He would create wall-like structures to block people's paths at night, fooled people with mirages and sold leaves from trees by making them look as if they were made of gold. He also created mirages to lure people into his lair (said to be a hole in the ground or a cellar), making it appear as a splendid estate. If he ever became ill, Danzaburou would disguise himself as a human and visit human doctors for treatment. His reputation was not all bad, however. He was said to have often lent money to people struggling with financial troubles, though said funds were in all likelihood obtained by him fooling people into working for him, or otherwise embezzled. Some