List of Great Teacher Onizuka Characters - Friends of Onizuka

Friends of Onizuka

Ryuji Danma (弾間 龍二, Danma Ryūji?)

• Voiced by: Isshin Chiba (Japanese), Ron Allen (English)
• Japanese live-action actor: Shirota Yu (2012-Remake)

Ryuji Danma' is Eikichi Onizuka's drinking buddy and partner during their days known as the "Onibaku" in Shonan Junai Gumi that GTO is a sequel of. In the years since he went "straight", Ryuji has set up his own used motorcycle shop and profits greatly from it. He is the one who refers Onizuka to Holy Forest Academy, when he forgets to take the public teachers' civil service exam.

Ryuji is not adverse to showing Onizuka some tough love, such as refusing to lend him any money to cover the cost of the school trip to Okinawa - at least not until he clears up his own debts with Ryuji, although it can be interpreted that deep down, Ryuji is concerned for his friend's well-being; after all, the deeper the trouble Onizuka is in, the less likely Ryuji will ever see his money again.

Toshiyuki Saejima (冴島 俊行, Saejima Toshiyuki?)

• Voiced by: Kazuki Yao (Japanese), Jack Aubree (English)
• Japanese live-action actor: Naohito Fujiki, Yusuke Yamamoto (2012-Remake)

One of Eikichi Onizuka's and Ryuji Danma's old friends from their bōsōzoku days in Shonan Junai Gumi prequel to GTO, Toshiyuki Saejima is a corrupt police officer, and spends his time selling seized police evidence. He tries to convince Onizuka to buy into his scams, such as selling goods off the locker, Mercedes-Benz vehicles, counterfeit Prada handbags, handguns, poppies, pandas, Chinese immigrants among other things and "testing" out weapons from crime scenes. He apparently also hires prostitutes on a regular basis, and attempts to get Onizuka to join in his operations, so as cut costs.

Unlike Ryuji and Onizuka, Saejima seems to have difficulty in letting go of his bōsōzoku ways. Aside from his illegalities, he is willing to execute the psychotic Suguru Teshigawara in cold blood, during his rampage, so as to get a promotion, but also justifying it as "protecting the kiddies". Despite his ways, deep down, he is a good and reliable friend that Onizuka can count on and will always be there for him, even if it means his job (or his well being).

Saejima stars in three chapters of the original manga, set entirely in Onizuka's perspective, where the reader learns more of his life and the fate of other characters from Shonan Junai Gumi. In the live-action, Saejima's name is rewritten to Ryūji, since the producers decided to merge the two characters.

Nagisa Nagase (長瀬 渚, Nagase Nagisa?)

• Voiced by: Kae Araki (Japanese), Cindy Robinson (English)

Briefly seen in the manga, Nagisa Nagase is Ryuji Danma's attractive, grad-school girlfriend, where they first met in the GTO prequel, Shonan Junai Gumi. In the manga, when Eikichi Onizuka is exceptionally angry, and does not wish to teach the class, he is shown sitting behind his desk contemplating, while the students watch a lesson given by Nagisa through a videotape, albeit reluctantly, through its footage.

In the anime she first appears when Onizuka and Danma are having a conversation in a bar after Onizuka's interview. Onizuka tries to dive right into her bosom when Danma grabs him right by the collar and shortly starts throwing punches at Onizuka for being a bit of a lech towards Nagisa. She does not appear in the live-action.