Japan’s Yashio Hihokan Museum Bans Nijisanji VTubers After Unauthorized Visit and Recording Dispute

Credit: Yashio Hihokan Museum

Japan’s one-of-a-kind sex doll museum, Yashio Hihokan, has cut ties with popular VTuber agency Nijisanji after a heated disagreement over an unannounced visit and what the museum owner says was seriously out-of-line behavior. In a blunt blog post (via Automaton), museum owner Yoshitaka Hyodo didn’t hold back, calling the agency a "lawless organization" for ignoring basic etiquette and crossing several lines of professional conduct.

Yashio Hihokan isn’t your average museum—it’s a deeply personal place that showcases Hyodo’s private collection of sex dolls. Located in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, it also doubles as his home. Because of how personal the space is, visits are strictly appointment-only, arranged through email. But despite those clear rules, a Nijisanji-affiliated VTuber—reportedly Tsukino Mito—showed up without notice, leading to the visit being turned down at first.

Things didn’t end there. The same VTuber later booked an appointment—this time, allegedly without being upfront about plans to record monetized content. According to Hyodo, the visit ended up being a big breach of trust. A video was eventually uploaded (now been made private), which included audio recorded during the visit. Hyodo says the audio was secretly captured, including comments from a third party who hadn’t agreed to be recorded.

At first, Hyodo was willing to let it slide, especially considering the VTuber’s age. But according to his blog, things escalated when a Nijisanji manager started sending emails that he found rude and inappropriate. That’s when he decided to go public. “There’s a proper way to do interviews,” Hyodo wrote. “You ignored all of it and still acted rude to someone who was being tolerant. I will never deal with you again.”

As a result, the Yashio Hihokan has officially banned all Nijisanji VTubers from doing interviews or making any kind of content related to the museum.

Nijisanji hasn’t released an official statement yet, but Tsukino Mito did post a detailed response on X. She said the whole situation stemmed from “a huge miscommunication,” and claimed they had permission to record. She also denied that the emails were rude.

“The visit itself was just for fun, and I was hoping to make a video if I could get permission,” she explained. “There was a lack of prior explanation, which caused confusion, and I really regret that. We even told the museum director that if we didn’t get permission, we wouldn’t upload anything and would just enjoy the visit.”

As for the audio, Mito said they began recording after Hyodo reportedly said, “If you’re a YouTuber, shouldn’t you start filming now?” She insists nothing was recorded beforehand.

She also addressed a claim in the blog that she had “hidden the smartphone,” saying that wasn’t the case at all. “A friend of the director who was there told us, ‘We can’t show our faces, but you can use our voices,’ so we held the phone in front of him and recorded. But we sincerely apologize if it gave the impression that anything was done without permission, and we’re sorry for any discomfort caused.”

The situation has sparked plenty of debate online, with many discussing where to draw the line between content creation and respecting private spaces.