Okuri-inu

Koyama Masao's Chiisagata-gun mindanshū (小県郡民譚集; literally, 'Collection of folk stories from Chiisagata District'), a book published in the early Shōwa period, contains accounts of okuri-inu.

It describes a woman from Shioda (now Ueda) who, leaving her husband at home, went to her parents' house to give birth to her child.

Like the okuri-inu, they are feared as a yōkai that stalk you on mountain roads and passes that are said to eat its victims when they fall over, but can actually protect people from danger if they are treated correctly.

According to the Honchō shokkan (本朝食鑑; literally, 'A record of Japanese food'), if you beg for your life without fighting back, the okuri-ōkami will save you from harm from the beasts in the mountain.

The Wakan Sansai Zue's entry on the wolf states that as the okuri-ōkami will jump many times over the heads of those travelling on mountain trails at night, it will not do any harm provided you are not afraid and do not resist.

[3] The Japanese expression 'okuri-ōkami', which refers to people who gain a person's good will whilst harbouring bad intentions, or a man who follows a woman, originates from these legends.