Kintaro is often depicted grappling a giant carp or bearing a large hatchet (ono or masakari) whilst mounted atop a bear. His name, Kintaro, means "golden boy" and the kanji for "gold" (金) is often shown on his red bib . Kintaro was friends with many animals and was believed to have been able to speak with them. One of his friends was a big carp living in a river, which was saved by him when it jumped on the bank. He sat astride the carp and enjoyed going up the steep fall of the river. In Japanese tattooing, Kintaro is usually depicted grappling this  carp.