Manta Oyamada, a studious yet shrimpy middle-school student from Tokyo, attempted a shortcut one night through the graveyard to get home after a late night of cram school. While traveling through it, he encounters Yoh Asakura and his "companions": a graveyard filled with ghosts. Yoh reveals himself to be a shaman, a medium between the worlds of the living and the dead. As a shaman, Yoh also demonstrates his ability to possess himself with ghosts to assist him where needed, particularly becoming fond of a former samurai known as Amidamaru. Over the first few chapters, Yoh and Manta become best friends while Yoh uses his shamanic abilities to help them out through various normal tasks.