Gagoze no Oni

Gagoze no Oni, Plague of the Forest, was created in the Shadowlands Marshes of Shinomen.

Creation
Gagoze no Oni was unique among its kind in that it neither came through a portal from Jigoku nor was it summoned by the will of a mortal. Instead, the beast crawled fully formed from the Shadowlands Marsh, a wretched swamp within the Shinomen Mori created from the liquefied remains of Shadowlands creatures slain long ago by the Naga race. Naga magic contained the fetid morass for centuries, but long after the Naga had gone to sleep the Gagoze no Oni inexplicably emerged from its foul depths and casually dismissed the Naga wards.

Abilities
Gagoze no Oni was an exceptionally intelligent and cunning oni, commanding formidable supernatural powers. It not only commanded the power of the kansen but could also compel obedience from the elemental kami as well. Gagoze was particularly reviled by all shugenja aware of its existence, and the Kuni had dedicated themselves to the demon's destruction. The Gagoze no Oni used its burning gaze to deliberately pass the Taint on to others.

Appearance
The oni vaguely resembled the Naga it hated. It had a serpentine lower body that ended in a long and powerful tail, but a human-like upper torso. The creature was capable of dropping into a low crouch where its shoulders were nearly parallel with the ground, allowing it to move like a serpent at great speed along the ground.