Ever since he was a child, zombie-obsessed Chihiro Furuya has wanted an undead girlfriend. Soon enough, his love for all things zombie comes in handy when his cat Baabu gets run over, prompting Chihiro to try to make a resurrection potion and bring him back to life. During his endeavor, he sees a rich girl named Rea Sanka yelling into an old well every day about her oppressive life. After meeting and bonding with her, Chihiro is convinced by Rea to persevere in saving Baabu. Eventually, he succeeds with the help of the poisonous hydrangea flowers from Rea's family garden. Unaware of the potion's success and seeking to escape the burdens of her life, Rea drinks the resurrection potion, mistakenly thinking she will die. Though it doesn't kill her, the effects still linger and her death from a fatal accident causes her to be reborn as a zombie. With help from Chihiro, Rea strives to adjust to her new—albeit undead—life. For a boy wanting a zombie girlfriend, this situation would seem like a dream come true. But in Sankarea, Chihiro's life becomes stranger than usual as he deals with Rea's odd new cravings and the unforeseen consequences of her transformation. The protagonist, Chihiro Furuya, is a male highschool student with a keen interest in zombies, collecting zombie-related videogames, film and manga, and even to the point of desiring to “kiss a zombie girl”. Following the death of his pet cat, he attempts to revive it using an old manuscript, which describes the process of creating a potion for resurrection. At this time he encounters a girl named Rea Sanka, who has run away from home. In an attempt to commit suicide, she drinks a sample of the “resurrection” potion which is created from a poisonous herb known as Hydrangea macrophylla, however this fails to kill her.