The Saga Sagako Busters (佐賀サガコバスターズ, Saga Sagako Basutāzu) was a group of Sagako hunters who dedicated themselves to fighting curses in Saga. They were first introduced in the manga Zombie Land Saga Side Story: The First Zombie.
Overview[]
They call themselves pure, beautiful, and righteous. They fought against the curse that plagued Saga in the late 80s. Ten years before the events of the Gaiden manga, in 1979, the Sagako Busters group is founded by Jofuku. Thanks to MJ, Tae was able to form a team that is willing to give their lives for the good and prosperity of Saga.
Without Yuko's power, the team would not be able to seal the Sagakos that appear in Saga, so she was an essential piece of the team. Thanks to the “love” the land received from years of cultivation, it made the onions at Hyodo's Farm special, and the Hyodo twins were given the power to seal curses with these onions.
However, Yuko's power weakens over time, and she reaches a point where she seals herself in an onion along with another Sagako as a sacrificial act.
The last to join is Eikichi Hyodo, Yuko's brother, who joins against his will when his sister turns into an onion and is forced to fight the Sagakos because he also has the power to seal these curses. Along with Tae's training, Eikichi dedicated himself to fighting and learning with the Sagako Busters to defeat the curse and get his sister back.
However, the curse grows stronger every day, generating more and more Sagakos, so the Busters must find new ways to fight this threat. During his participation in the group, Eikichi slowly shows himself to be just as effective as his sister with Sagako's seals.
The Busters' most difficult challenge was fighting the spider Sagako, which turned out to be none other than the girl that Tae's parents found and raised. Magatsuhi splits up the group by kidnapping Anna and Hanako, leaving Tae and Eikichi on their own. The group meets again at the Forest and Squirrel Amusement Park Fairy Tale Village, where Tae and Eikichi are kidnapped by Magatsuhi and discover that the onions Eikichi put a blanket on have hatched and the Sagako inside have been released. Thanks to the purified Sagako, they fight Magatsuhi with all of their might.
Tae, who was already wounded from the battle, makes the ultimate sacrifice by using the Misogi power of the onions to seal Magatsuhi within her body. Wiping out the Sagako and the power of the onions in the process. Yuko is freed from her onion, now with the antlers of the Sagako she fused with, and realizes that her twin brother is now bigger than her. Hanako then cuts off her antlers with an electric saw.
By 1994, the Sagako Busters girls have moved on with their lives; Yuko gets married and is now a mother, Hanako now does scientific research, and Anna became a police officer and reconciled with her family. Jofuku has rejuvenated and opened a new adult store. The group gathers on the fifth anniversary of Tae's death for their “promised day” at the cemetery where her grave is.
Objective[]
The Sagako Busters were formed to defeat the Sagako, physical manifestations of the Saga curse that terrorized Saga during a time of prosperity. Led by Tae Yamada, the group was quite disciplined in its duties, from sealing the Sagako to even domestic chores. Tae was raised by Jofuku, who taught her how to fight these curses, and her hatred for the Sagako fueled a deep-seated remorse that she channeled into discipline.
Yuko Hyodo joined shortly after discovering the sealing power of onions and the power of Misogi. Thanks to this, the curses could be sealed and purified, gradually saving Saga. Hanako Hakase also joined during this time. After the group's founding, many aspiring members joined, including an occultist, a self-proclaimed fortune teller, and a medium. None of them lasted more than three days in the group. One day, a mysterious girl named Anna Shuri arrives, willing to help them despite the seemingly absurd prospect of fighting supernatural beings. Besides being adept at adapting to Hanako's inventions, she excels in battle and solves problems with meticulous attention to detail. With her help, the group can defeat many Sagakos more effectively.
The Busters' mission is thwarted when Keiji Higashino, a corrupt police officer from Tokyo, makes a deal with a cursed being. The deal involves destroying the Sagakos so she can regain her full power. However, she reneges on the agreement and murders Keiji, then escapes and infects Saga with her cursed powers. To defeat Magatsuhi, Tae Yamada sacrifices herself, using her own body as the vessel for the curse. The result is that she merges her body and soul with the curse, purifying it, but dies in the process. That same year, the Busters officially disbanded after having fulfilled their objective of saving Saga from Sagako.
Members[]
- Tae Yamada—The founder and leader of the group. She calls herself “Saga's Legendary OL (Office Lady),” but in reality she works at a food stall together with her father. She performs an act of sacrifice to seal Magatsuhi away and end Sagako's curses once and for all. Later, she is revived to become a part of Franchouchou.
- Hanako Hakase—The weapons specialist and inventor to help her group.
- Anna Shuri—The self-proclaimed beauty of the group. She is a martial artist who was hired because the team lacked manpower.
- Yuko Hyodo—Yuko is the girl who has powers to communicate with onions, and it is she who instinctively knows where the Sagakos are and has the power to seal them.
- Eikichi Hyodo—Yuko's new recruit and replacement. Like his sister, he has the power to communicate with onions and seal the Sagakos.
Allies/Partners[]
- Jofuku—He is the one who raised Tae after her parents were killed and instructed her to destroy the Sagakos.
- Takeo Go—A giant high school student who was helped by the Sagako Busters so he could confess to his partner, Sachika.
- Yasuko Hyodo—She is the mother of the Hyodo twins and helped the team when a giant Sagako destroyed their base of operations.
Supporters and Enemies[]
Enemies[]
- Keiji Higashino—An acquaintance of Anna's, who came to Saga when he was demoted from his position in Tokyo. He poses a risk to the Busters when he hinders their plans to seal the Sagako away.
- Magatsuhi—The curse who killed Tae's parents and started the Sagako outbreak. She makes a deal with Higashino to get her old power back. Afterwards, she is sealed inside Tae's body.
Property[]
Base of Operations[]
- Western-style building—The Sagako Busters used a mansion in Karatsu as the headquarters of their plans, training place, and warehouse. It also served as Tae's house. The mansion is destroyed by the spider Sagako, but by the 90s it is rebuilt again.
- Hanako's Inventions—As an inventor and weapon maker, she has many inventions, such as the Del-height and the love potion, that are stored in the mansion's rooms.
4th generation Toyota HiAce Long Van 2.0 DX RZH112V; 1989
Mode of Transport[]
- Busters' Van—The model of the truck that the Sagako Busters use is a Toyota HiAce (a very similar brand of truck that was driven by Kotaro). And the model of the van they drive is the fourth-generation Toyota HiAce, which was released in 1989 (the year Gaiden takes place) and is a completely unique van compared to Kotaro's HiAce. Because Kotaro's truck is actually the 5th generation Toyota HiAce Commuter, Kotaro's truck is much more luxurious and more modern compared to the HiAce of the 80s due to its much boxier design as a more futuristic and modern style than the current HiAce.
Trivia[]
- The group and its name are a reference to the Ghost Busters.
- The group's base of operations is the Western-style building where the Franchouchou girls currently live. As well as the makeup and other items in the mansion that were used by the group when it was active.
- The girls' meeting room was the meeting place to alert about the new Sagakos that appeared in Saga.