Chapter 9: Encounter! A Straight Left To His Face!

'''Chapter 9: Encounter! A Straight Left To His Face! (遭遇！あいつの顔に左ストレート！' Sōgū! Aitsu no kao ni hidari sutorēto!'') is the nineth chapter of the spin-off manga series of Zombie Land Saga, titled “Zombie Land Saga Side Story: The First Zombie”.

Synopsis
The mysterious detective Higashino is planning something against Sagako, will the Busters be ready?

Plot
The chapter begins with a rookie policeman following Higashino since he was ordered to watch him since he had a lot of freedom of movement from the first day he was in Saga, the head of the police station assigned Araki Aiba as the detective's partner.

As they walk, they both talk about Araki's new title of officer, who is following a family legacy of being a policeman, Higashino asks Aiba if he has heard about the "Sagakos" to which he replies that he only knows that there is a group of occultists in Saga who deal with supernatural matters, Keiji tells him that the Sagakos are real and that it is his duty to find out what these creatures offer humans.

Back at the Sagako Busters' mansion, Anna tells them more details about Keiji and her past relationship with her in Tokyo and how he wasn't looking for her, but information related to supernatural happenings in Saga. Even for Anna, Higashino is someone unpredictable, and quickly changing the subject she asks MJ about what would happen if someone used firearms on a Sagako, and not very happy, he gets up from the table exclaiming that the souls of a Sagako must be purified and if it is not done these will return with even more force. In other words, if it's not sealed in an onion properly the curses will become much more powerful, is what Yuko always said.

In a quick flashback, Tae and Yuko are talking about Sagako, to which Yuko asks Tae if she thinks Sagakos are born to do evil, since she feels they take the form of objects that already exist for some reason. If they could talk to Sagako they could find out more about their operation and understand why they come to the world, by using the onions from their farm, Sagako's souls are purified with love. That was Yuko's wish for them, and thus, the group splits up to find Higashino before he finds a Sagako.

Higashino begins to investigate the sightings of Sagako and comes to the quick conclusion that they appear in populated or prosperous areas, therefore, he himself goes to one of these areas, not without first being approached by Aiba who must watch him to avoid a scolding from his boss. Before leaving Higashino tells him to guide him to a popular area or one that will be prosperous in the future, to which the policeman guides him to a forest where they both meet a crowd of Sagakos in that area and Higashino begins to observe them "carefully", seeing how one of them seems to be crying tears of acid or poison that destroys the grass around it to which the detective only comments that they could use it as fertilizer and sell it to the agricultural industry. To make a closer inspection of the Sagako, Keiji tries to open one of it using a stone but is hit by the Sagako he was trying to hurt, to which he responds by shooting all the Sagakos in the area while gloating over the pain he just caused to the Sagakos.

The shots catch the attention of Eikichi who quickly goes in search of the detective and sees with horror the unpurified bodies of Sagako and angrily goes to confront Higashino about what he did, not only is he not helping anything but he is destroying the dream of his sister by not purifying those souls. Keiji wastes no time and hits the high school boy leaving him on the floor and insulting the entire legacy of the Sagako Busters group by calling the group false heroines of justice who think they help the world, he leaves the place while Aiba tries to calm him down a little about the situation. The chapter ends with Eikichi knocked out and passed out in the woods.

Characters

 * Saga Sagako Busters
 * Tae Yamada
 * Jofuku
 * Eikichi Hyodo
 * Yuko Hyodo
 * Anna Shuri
 * Hanako Hakase
 * Keiji Higashino
 * Araki Aiba (debut)
 * Sagako Demons
 * Spider Egg Sagako

Locations

 * Saga Prefecture
 * Saga Sagako Busters' Mansion
 * Karatsu Police Station
 * Karatsu Forests

External Link

 * Gaiden Chapter 9 Unofficial English Translation

Trivia

 * It is revealed that if a Sagako were to be taken outside of the Saga Prefecture's borders, it will explode resulting to its demise.
 * This is also hinted to be the case for Zombies in Kotaro Tatsumi's dialogue in "The Acoustic SAGA of Love and Youth" about rejecting work for Ai Mizuno that involves going outside of Saga.

es: Capítulo 9: ¡Encuentro! ¡Un izquierdazo directo a su cara!