Long, long ago, in a small village, there lived an old man and an old woman. Every day, the old man went to the mountains to cut wood, and the old woman went to the river to wash clothes.
One day, while the old woman was washing clothes by the river, she saw a huge peach floating down the river. “What a big peach!” she exclaimed and decided to take it home.
When she got home, the old man was also amazed. “I’ve never seen such a big peach,” he said. Together, they decided to cut the peach open. To their surprise, a healthy baby boy jumped out of the peach. They were both astonished and overjoyed. They decided to name the boy “Momotaro,” which means “Peach Boy.”
Momotaro grew up quickly under the care of the old man and the old woman. He became a strong and kind boy. One day, some ogres came to the village and started causing trouble. They stole money and food from the villagers, who were very distressed.
Momotaro decided to help the village and set out to defeat the ogres. “Grandma, please make some dumplings for me,” he said. The old woman worked hard to make delicious dumplings. “Take these with you. They will surely help,” she said.
Momotaro took the dumplings and set off on his journey. On the way, he met a dog. The dog said, “Please give me one of those dumplings. If you do, I will join you to defeat the ogres.” Momotaro gave the dog a dumpling. Next, he met a monkey. The monkey said, “Please give me one of those dumplings. If you do, I will join you to defeat the ogres.” Momotaro gave the monkey a dumpling. Finally, he met a pheasant. The pheasant said, “Please give me one of those dumplings. If you do, I will join you to defeat the ogres.” Momotaro gave the pheasant a dumpling.
With the dog, the monkey, and the pheasant as his companions, Momotaro headed to the ogres’ island. When they arrived, the ogres fought fiercely. Momotaro and his companions worked together to battle the ogres. The dog bit the ogres, the monkey scratched their backs, and the pheasant pecked at them from the sky. Momotaro fought bravely and finally defeated the ogres.
The ogres’ leader appeared and shouted, “We will not lose to children like you!” The leader swung a huge club, but Momotaro quickly dodged, and the dog bit the club. The monkey jumped on the leader’s back, and the pheasant pecked at the leader’s face. Finally, Momotaro charged with all his might and defeated the leader.
The ogres begged for mercy. “We will never do bad things again. Please forgive us,” they said, and returned all the treasures they had stolen from the village. Momotaro and his friends took the treasures back to the village.
The villagers welcomed them with great joy. “Thank you, Momotaro! You are the hero of our village!” they all said. The old man and the old woman were also very happy. Momotaro lived happily ever after with everyone in the village.