Garouden: The Way of the Lone Wolf follows Juzo Fujimaki, a skilled fighter who is pursued by both the law and other fighters. The series is now streaming on Netflix.
Warning: This article contains heavy spoilers
Plot summary
Juzo Fujimaki is a martial arts specialist. He was trained by Master Socihiro Izumi, one of the three strongest fighters, in the Takemiya style of martial arts.
Seven years ago, a robber broke into Izumi’s house and raped his daughter, Saeko, whom Juzo loved.
When Juzo saw what had happened, he lost control and killed the robber. He then saw the look on Saeko’s face and ran away.
Due to this, Juzo became a wanted man. He swore never to fight humans again, but there are times when he loses control of his inner beast.
Although it has been seven years, a detective named Fuhito Tamon, who was defeated by Juzo in a match when they were both younger, is still looking for him.
Juzo gets injured after single-handedly defeating a brown bear to save two people. He is taken to a doctor by someone called the Sergeant, who also arranges a hiding place for him.
Juzo learns about Master Ichiro Shino, who once won the renowned Hokushinkan Tournament, an annual event started by Master Shozan Matsuo of the Hokushinkan school.
Shino has lost his spirit since he was defeated in the first round of the same tournament three years ago. He is now being targeted by the mafia.
One day, Juzo saves Ichiro’s daughter, which leads to Ichiro challenging Juzo to a fight. Ichiro loses to Juzo and decides to retire as a fighter and focus solely on training others.
At the same time, a fighter named Bunshichi Tanba goes around challenging everyone to test his own strength.
Juzo visits Master Ranbo, a monk who took him in when he was running from the police, and Miyuki, a girl who considers Juzo her brother because he saved her in the past.
Ranbo is currently training an ex-boxer named Joze. After losing his mother at a young age, Joze lived with his father, who was also a boxer.
Joze went pro at the age of 17. Soon after, his father was killed by a drunk thug. The incident deeply impacted Joze.
After he was offered a title match, Joze got into a bar fight. His opponent pulled out a knife, and because of what happened to his father, Joze lost control.
The fight ruined his career. Joze tells Juzo about his past, and when they leave the island Ranbo lives on, he forces a reluctant Juzo to fight him.
The fight ends with Juzo breaking Joze’s arm. The two of them are then visited by the Sergeant, a woman who organizes an underground martial arts tournament called KODOKU.
This time, KODOKU is being held in Japan, and since Juzo defeated both Ichiro and Joze, she wants Juzo to participate in it.
The Sergeant’s doctor planted 10,000 dormant eelworms in Juzo’s body when he treated him. With one signal, the parasites can be awakened and kill Juzo.
If Juzo agrees to participate in KODOKU, the Sergeant will give him the antidote to neutralize the parasites, and if he wins, she will have his name taken off the wanted list.
Juzo has no choice but to agree to participate. He is asked to bring an advisor with him, and he chooses Joze. He also asks the Sergeant not to bother Ichiro anymore.
Juzo defeats various opponents, including Ryuoumaru and Mifune, a fighter whose son’s advice allows him to defend himself like no other.
Whenever Juzo’s inner beast wakes up, he stops pulling his punches and wins the fights, reaching the finals where he must fight Oleg Zaitsev, a strong fighter who kills all his opponents.
However, even Oleg does not stand a chance against Juzo’s secret move, called Tiger King. Shozan Matsuo comes to watch this match with his student, Tsutomu Himekawa.
Unlike the typical Hokushinkan Tournament, this year, he wants to organize a large-scale event featuring various martial arts instead of solely a karate tournament.
He had sent Himekawa to invite Izumi, who ended up training Himekawa as his student. Himekawa is set to inherit the Takemiya style from him.
Additionally, while being trained by Izumi, Himekawa started dating Saeko. Soon after that, Izumi was challenged and defeated by Bunshichi Tanba.
When Juzo hears about Izumi’s defeat, he decides to return to his teacher and ask Saeko about her feelings for him.
He takes the antidote given by the Sergeant but refuses the promised prize after he wins. Instead, he asks the Sergeant to clear Joze’s name so he can box again.
Juzo and Joze part ways when Juzo goes to meet Izumi. All the while, Tamon, along with his partner Hikita, keeps chasing after Juzo.
Ending explained:
Juzo’s rivals
When Juzo meets his master, he finds out that Himekawa as well as Bunshichi Tanba, who is also learning from Izumi, will inherit the Takemiya style from him.
Juzo, who wants to be Izumi’s heir, then sets his mind on challenging the two men to see if they are worthy of inheriting the style.
Furthermore, he decides to confess his feelings to Saeko afterward, but he is shocked to find out that she is now with Himekawa.
This gives Juzo another reason to fight Himekawa. He is confident that he can win against him when Saeko questions him about it.
Juzo then seeks out Tanba and fights with him, but their fight is interrupted by the police. They decide to leave their fight for another time.
On the same day, Tamon finds Juzo. It turns out that he has been chasing Juzo all this time to have a rematch. He promises not to arrest Juzo if he defeats him.
Juzo succeeds in defeating Tamon and avoids getting arrested. He plans to fight Himekawa next.
Fighting Himekawa
Himekawa participates in the Hokushinkan Tournament and reaches the final round. Juzo incapacitates Himekawa’s opponent and challenges Himekawa to a fight.
Juzo had been unbeatable until now because of his secret move, the Tiger King, but Himekawa and Tanba have also been learning it from Izumi.
Before the match begins, Izumi gives his training gear to Juzo to wear during the fight. Saeko, who never wanted Juzo to leave, also cheers for him.
The fight is not easy for Juzo because Himekawa, who has been studying Juzo for some time now, is able to injure him with his powerful kicks.
The fight takes a toll on both Juzo and Himekawa’s bodies. In the middle of it, Juzo remembers the look Saeko gave him when he killed the robber.
He now realizes that Saeko was not afraid of him but grateful to him for killing the man. This had scared Juzo back then, but he is not the same man anymore.
He no longer tries to keep his inner beast at bay. While Juzo manages to evade Himekawa’s Tiger King, when he tries to use his own on Himekawa, he loses the match.
Himekawa won because he had a counter-move ready for Juzo’s Tiger King. Himekawa was the winner this time, but he is not certain whether he will be able to win against Juzo again.
The fights that await Juzo
When the police hear that Juzo has come to compete in the tournament, they arrive to arrest him, but Shozan Matsuo manages to stop them from interrupting the match.
Once the match ends, the police finally get to arrest Juzo. Before they take him away, Shozan Matsuo tells Juzo that he needs him to fulfill his dream.
Shozan Matsuo, one of the three strongest martial arts experts, wants to fight someone worthy who will be able to defeat him.
He tells Juzo that he will remain active until Juzo serves his sentence and returns, as he plans to face Juzo in a match.
Juzo is arrested and taken away, but he is applauded by the audience, who recognize his skills as a fighter.
Meanwhile, Tanba continues his research on the Takemiya style, knowing that he will get to fight Juzo again in the future.
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