Kuriko, from Junji Ito's manga "The Bully" (adapted in anime), routinely tormented a shy boy named Nao during childhood after his mother entrusted him to her care. Frustrated by his growing attachment, she escalated her physical and psychological abuse: forcing him to drink gutter water, beating him with sticks, manipulating him into jumping from high playground equipment, and pushing him toward an aggressive dog that attacked him, causing permanent injuries. This incident prompted Nao and his mother to move away. Years later, as adults, Kuriko reconnected with Nao. He expressed no resentment, instead recalling their childhood positively and declaring his enduring affection. This led Kuriko to break her engagement to Yutaro and marry Nao. They had a small wedding and a son, Hiroshi. Shortly after Hiroshi's birth, Nao vanished under unexplained circumstances. Kuriko raised Hiroshi alone for four years, growing increasingly isolated and resentful. Noticing Hiroshi's strong resemblance to his father as a child triggered a psychological regression. She conflated Hiroshi with Nao, addressing her son by his father's name and subjecting him to the same abusive behaviors—ear-pulling and verbal attacks—while convincing herself Nao had "enjoyed" the torment. Kuriko concluded Nao's disappearance was an elaborate revenge plot: marrying her solely to abandon her with a child resembling him. This belief fueled further abuse. Mirroring her childhood actions, she dressed in her ill-fitting old children's clothes, applied smeared makeup, and took Hiroshi to the same playground where she had tormented Nao, intending to repeat the cycle of violence with her son.