Garouden

Garouden (餓狼伝, Garōden) is a series of Japanese martial arts novels by Baku Yumemakura. They have been adapted as a feature film, a manga by Keisuke Itagaki (of Baki the Grappler fame), and two video games.

Currently the best "serious" martial arts manga title in Japan, this is another of Baku's masterpieces that, unlike his other fantasy epic titles, this one surprises for the realism and deep exploration of martial arts and his effects on the people that uses it.

Plot
Fighting expert Bunshichi Tanba enjoys defeating fighting TV champions and celebrities on the street until he stumbles in the underground wrestling club known as FAW ( federation of amateur wrestling), unfortunately he's defeated by one of the underdogs of the wrestling world and forces himself to improve and looks for a rematch.

Years later he returns better than even and his fights attract the attention of the two "monsters" of the fighting world that are constantly in competition with each other, Makoto "the great" Tatsumi, owner of the FAW and with a power and charisma unrivaled in the ring, and "the demon of karate" Matsuo Shozan, owner of the best Karate schools in Japan and with a power and speed that's almost godlike.

Both will try to recruit Tanba to their own side and Tanba will experience a fighting world like he has never seen, with friends and rivals everywhere, he must have to step to the many challenges that present in front of him, also it has the special appearance of other martial arts characters from his other fighting novel series, the gate of the lions.