Taira no Masakado, the very first samurai, is also apparently still the standard-bearer for the age-old warrior class of Japan. According to the Guardian, the story of Masakado's life is just as exciting as his death. His head is his Achilles heel. It's the only place his serpent mother forgot to lick. But other than that he was completely invincible, according to legend. So his enemies cut off his head, which is the only thing that's left buried. And that's just his life.
When the Ministry of Finance burned down during an earthquake in 1923, the superstitious Japanese emperor blamed Masakado — over a 1,000 years dead (via Atlas Obscura). The state planned to rebuild the ministry on top of Masakado's grave, but then people started die. Fourteen lives were lost within five years on the premises, and after the death of the finance minister himself, plans were abandoned.
The incidents continued. So much so that, as the Guardian says, even the occupying United States Army refused to touch it in 1945. When a bank built a branch on the location, they quickly found themselves declaring bankruptcy in 2002 and, in a last-ditch effort, opened an account in Masakado's name. It didn't help.
Nowadays, there's a small garden dedicated to Masakado's memory, and you can bet no one is going to be building there any time soon.
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