Butsu Zone
The series highlights the adventures of Senju (the Thousand-Hand Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva) who has to find and protect Sachi, an incarnation of the Buddha Miroku (Maitreya Bodhisattva). Miroku is said to appear on Earth at a time when the Dharma is no longer taught and is completely forgotten, achieve complete enlightenment and then re-teach the pure dharma, becoming a successor of Śākyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. It is thus Senju's job to aid Miroku (Sachi) in achieving enlightenment, enabling her to achieve Buddha. Description. In 1975,a jung orphan girl named Sachi protests against the planned  destruction of the temple Saigan (her home) by the Minoura clan, who plans to build a hotel in its place. When one of the gangsters notices the statue of the Thousand-Hand Kannon within the temple, Sachi tells them that she will not allow anything to happen to the statue. In response, the gangsters laugh and threaten her, telling her that there is nothing the statue can do to save her. However, the Thousand-Hand Kannon comes to life, breaking the temple doors and attacking one of the gangsters. The statue shatters into pieces and inside it is a boy  who tells them to lay their hands off Sachi, sending fear amongst the gangsters who then flee, vowing revenge. The boy introduces himself as Senju, the Thousand-Hand Kannon. Senju, as an emissary of the buddha Kannon, has appeared in the human world to find and protect the reincarnation of the future Buddha, Miroku. Recognizing Sachi as Miroku, Senju reveals that it is his mission to accompany her to India where she will awaken and achieve enlightenment to save the world from destruction. However, they are inhibited by the Mara, forces that seek to pollute with earthly desires, and Buddha  who believe that Senju is not strong enough to protect Sachi from harm. Media. Manga. "Butsu Zone" is written and illustrated by Hiroyuki Takei. The manga was serialized in "Weekly Shōnen Jump" from March 3 to August 14, 1997. Shueisha collected the nineteen individual chapters known as "Butsu" into three tankōbon. The first was published on July 4, 1997; the final was released on December 4, 1997. Shueisha re-released the series in two volumes on July 18, 2007.