Kudo (wrestler)

2.1. Dramatic Dream Team (2001-2005)

Kudo began his professional wrestling journey with DDT Pro-Wrestling, making his debut on November 30, 2001, under a mask as Konica Man #2. He initially worked as a low-carder, often teaming with another masked wrestler, Hero!. In April 2002, a storyline saw Konica Man #2, supposedly poisoned by Poison Sawada Julie, turn on Hero!, unmasking himself and adopting the ring name Toguro Habukage. This led to a feud where Hero! attempted to help Habukage regain his memory and break free from Sawada's influence. The elaborate storyline culminated in January 2003, when Hero! "rescued" a disoriented Habukage, who had lost all memory of his past, from a fictional Hong Kong organization. During this event, when Hero! tried to recall Habukage's true name, saying various common Japanese surnames like "Sato? Tanaka? Takagi? Hashimoto?", there was no reaction. However, upon hearing "Kudo?", Habukage responded, leading to his adoption of the ring name Kudo.

On January 4, 2003, Kudo made his re-debut, now incorporating a martial artist gimmick that drew upon his kickboxing background. He continued to team with Hero!, and on December 29, 2003, the duo captured the KO-D Tag Team Championship by defeating Seiya Morohashi and Tomohiko Hashimoto, and Mikami and Onryo in a three-way Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match. During 2003, Kudo also won the Puroresu Koshien singles tournament and participated in Pro Wrestling Noah's Differ Cup. On September 2, 2004, Kudo made his debut for New Japan Pro-Wrestling in a match where he faced Wataru Inoue. Kudo and Hero! lost the KO-D Tag Team Championship on February 11, 2004, but later that year, on September 30, they regained the title and won the KO-D Tag League by defeating Danshoku Dino and Glenn "Q" Spectre. This second reign was short-lived, lasting only one month. In May 2005, Kudo won the King of DDT tournament, earning a shot at the KO-D Openweight Championship, but he was defeated by Sanshiro Takagi on June 29. On July 10, Kudo wrestled his final DDT match before embarking on a nine-month learning excursion to the United States.

2.2. American Excursion (2005-2006)

Kudo's American excursion provided him with valuable experience in various independent promotions across the United States. His first appearance was on July 13, 2005, where he defeated Eddie Kingston at an IWA East Coast event in South Charleston, West Virginia. He then debuted for Chikara on July 23, participating in the Young Lions Cup III tournament, where he defeated Anthony Franco in the first round before being eliminated in a six-way semifinal match. He also wrestled for International Wrestling Cartel (IWC) and Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South (IWA-MS) during this period. On September 10, he made his debut for NWA Upstate.

In February 2006, Kudo returned to IWC, losing to Milano Collection A.T.. He also entered Chikara's 2006 Tag World Grand Prix, teaming with fellow DDT worker Mikami. They advanced past Larry Sweeney and Mana, and Team Kaientai Dojo (Miyawaki and Yoshiaki Yago), but were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Delirious and Hallowicked. Kudo concluded his American excursion in March 2006, with his final IWA-MS appearance on March 17 and an IWC event on March 18.

2.3. Return to DDT and Initial Success (2006-2010)

Kudo returned to Japan and DDT on April 2, 2006. He soon found himself in a feud with his former partner, the now unmasked Harashima, and his villainous stable Disaster-Box. On June 25, Kudo, Masami Morohashi, and Seiya Morohashi unsuccessfully challenged for the Jiyūgaoka 6-Person Tag Team Championship. However, on July 2, Kudo, Mikami, and Shiima Xion won the 2006 Takechi Six Man Tag Scramble Cup. The rivalry with Disaster-Box culminated on July 23, where Kudo's team, representing DDT, defeated Disaster-Box in an eight-man elimination tag team match, with Kudo pinning Harashima for the final elimination. This victory earned Kudo a shot at the KO-D Openweight Championship, but he was unable to defeat the defending champion, Toru Owashi, on August 27. After a short break due to injury, Kudo turned heel and formed the Team 2 Thousand Island stable with Sanshiro Takagi and Yoshiaki Yago, reigniting his rivalry with the now-face Harashima.

In February 2007, Kudo, Miyawaki, and Yoshiaki Yago competed in Chikara's 2007 King of Trios tournament as "Team Kaientai Dojo". They defeated Team DDT and The Iron Saints, and then The Kings of Wrestling (Chuck Taylor, Gran Akuma, and Icarus) in the semifinals, but ultimately lost in the finals to Jigsaw, Mike Quackenbush, and Shane Storm. Back in DDT, Kudo's attempts to win the KO-D Openweight Championship in July 2007 were unsuccessful. He began regularly teaming with Yasu Urano in late 2007, and on September 23, they became number one contenders for the KO-D Tag Team Championship, though they failed to win the title from Antonio Honda and Prince Togo in November.

In March 2008, Kudo, Miyawaki, and Susumu entered the 2008 King of Trios tournament as Team Japan, but were eliminated in the quarterfinals by BLKOUT. On April 9, Kudo and Urano reached the finals of DDT's 2008 KO-D Tag Team Title League, losing to Mikami and Tanomusaku Toba. On May 6, Kudo won the Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship for the first time, though he lost it a month later. On July 6, Kudo, Urano, and Antonio Honda won the Jiyūgaoka Six-Person Tag Team Championship.

In early 2009, Kudo made several appearances as the Frenchman Jacques de Atsushinu, teaming with Louis Takanashi XIV (Masa Takanashi's French character). On March 27, 2009, Kudo returned to Chikara for the 2009 King of Trios tournament, teaming with Kota Ibushi and Michael Nakazawa as Team DDT, but they were eliminated in the first round. Upon his return to DDT, Kudo unsuccessfully challenged Harashima for the KO-D Openweight Championship on May 31. On August 23, Kudo and Yasu Urano became the new KO-D Tag Team Champions, winning a four-way elimination match. They successfully defended the title six times against various teams before losing it to Munenori Sawa and Sanshiro Takagi on February 11, 2010. On July 25, Kudo, Urano, and Antonio Honda lost the Jiyūgaoka Six-Person Tag Team Championship in a three-way match that also involved the DDT Nihonkai Six-Man Tag Team and UWA World Trios Championships.

2.4. KO-D Openweight Championship Reign and Homoiro Clover Z (2011-2012)

In early 2011, Kudo joined the Man's Club stable, formed by Danshoku Dino and Makoto Oishi. On May 21, Kudo entered the 2011 King of DDT tournament, winning against Yasu Urano, Hikaru Sato, and Kenny Omega. On May 29, he defeated Harashima in the finals to win his second King of DDT tournament, earning another shot at the KO-D Openweight Championship. On July 24, at DDT's annual Ryogoku Peter Pan event, Kudo defeated Shuji Ishikawa to win the KO-D Openweight Championship for the first time. He successfully defended the title five times against opponents such as Keisuke Ishii, Hikaru Sato, Masa Takanashi, Harashima, and Mikami.

Following a single match against Makoto Oishi in September, Kudo was invited by Oishi to join a new stable called Homoiro Clover Z, which Oishi and Danshoku Dino had formed. Kudo became the fourth member of the stable and was actively involved in their activities. In December 2011, Kudo participated in Indie Summit 2011 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, promoted by Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW), where he defeated Dick Togo and Masahiro Takanashi in a three-way match. He also appeared on CZW's internet pay-per-view, Cage of Death 13, in a ten-man tag team match. On January 29, 2012, Kudo lost the KO-D Openweight Championship to fellow Homoiro Clover Z member Danshoku Dino.

On June 16, 2012, Kudo and Makoto Oishi defeated Crying Wolf (Yasu Urano and Yuji Hino) to win the KO-D Tag Team Championship, marking Kudo's fourth reign with the title. They successfully defended the title against Daisuke Sasaki and Masa Takanashi, as well as Crying Wolf and Keisuke Ishii and Shigehiro Irie. However, on August 18, Kudo and Oishi lost the title to Mikami and Tatsumi Fujinami at DDT's fifteenth-anniversary event at Nippon Budokan. On August 26, DDT General Manager Amon Tsurumi ordered all stables disbanded. In Homoiro Clover Z's farewell match on September 19, Kudo's team was defeated by their stablemates. Afterwards, Kudo formed a new veteran stable called "Urashimakudo" with Harashima and Yasu Urano to feud with the villainous Team Drift (Dream Futures). Kudo was later sidelined in October 2012 with ligament damage following a dislocated right elbow.

2.5. Shuten-dōji Formation and Multiple Title Reigns (2013-2015)

While recovering from his injury, Kudo made a special appearance on November 25, 2012, as his old Toguro Habukage persona, accompanying Poison Sawada Julie to his retirement match. Kudo announced his return to the ring for February 17, 2013, to reform Urashimakudo. This led to a storyline where Hiro Tsumaki (now Fuma) attempted to join, but Yasu Urano turned on Fuma, solidifying Kudo's return to the stable. Kudo wrestled his first match in four months on February 17, teaming with Yasu Urano to defeat Danshoku Dino and Makoto Oishi. Kudo then entered a tournament for the number one contender spot for the KO-D Openweight Championship but lost in the first round. The rivalry between Urashimakudo and Team Drift culminated in a six-man tag team match on August 17, 2013, which Team Drift won. On September 29, Kudo won a ten-person battle royal to secure his second reign as Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship. He lost the title on October 13 to Danshoku Dino.

On February 23, 2014, Kudo quit the Urashimakudo stable, challenging Harashima for the KO-D Openweight Championship. On March 2, he formed a new stable with Masa Takanashi and Yukio Sakaguchi, united by their shared love for alcohol. On March 9, the stable was officially named Shuten-dōji, after a sake-drinking oni from Japanese folklore. At Judgement 2014, Kudo defeated Harashima to win the KO-D Openweight Championship for the second time, fueled by the motivation of his apartment loan. Shuten-dōji quickly announced their intention to dominate DDT, targeting other titles. On April 29, Kudo successfully defended the KO-D Openweight Championship twice in one night: first against Akito, and immediately afterwards against Yasu Urano, who cashed in his "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contract.

On May 4, Shuten-dōji secured another title, defeating Daisuke Sasaki, Kenny Omega, and Kota Ibushi to win the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship. Although Kudo and Sakaguchi failed to win the KO-D Tag Team Championship on May 11, Kudo lost the KO-D Openweight Championship back to Harashima on May 25. Shuten-dōji successfully defended the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship on June 8. In June, Kudo reached the finals of the 2014 King of DDT tournament but was defeated by Isami Kodaka. On July 13, Shuten-dōji lost the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship but regained it just seven days later in a three-way match. They lost the title again on August 17 at Ryogoku Peter Pan 2014.

On February 15, 2015, Shuten-dōji won the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship for the third time. They then entered a series of title changes with Team Drift, losing the title on March 1, winning it back on March 21, and losing it again on April 11. On April 29, Kudo regained a "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contract and announced his intention to challenge Harashima for the KO-D Openweight Championship on May 31. Despite briefly losing the contract to Daisuke Sasaki on May 17, he regained it a week later, solidifying the title match. On May 31, Kudo defeated Harashima to win the KO-D Openweight Championship for the third time. In a unique turn of events on June 6, Kudo won another "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contract from Danshoku Dino, meaning he held the right to challenge for his own title. On June 28, Kudo lost the KO-D Openweight Championship to Ken Ohka in a three-way match that also involved Yasu Urano, but because he was not pinned, he retained his contract. He immediately cashed it in for a singles match, defeating Ohka to regain the title, starting his fourth reign and emptying all "Right to Challenge" contracts. This set him up to main event the August 23 Ryogoku Peter Pan 2015 event. At this event, Kudo lost the KO-D Openweight Championship to his stablemate and 2015 King of DDT winner, Yukio Sakaguchi.

In September 2015, Kudo participated in Pro Wrestling Noah's 2015 NTV G+ Cup Junior Heavyweight Tag League alongside DDT worker Kota Umeda. However, on September 16, Kudo was forced to withdraw from the tournament after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury. The following day, he announced that the injury required surgery and would sideline him for approximately one year.

2.6. Return from Injury and Hiatus (2016-2019)

Kudo made his return from injury on August 28, 2016, at Ryogoku Peter Pan 2016, teaming with Masahiro Takanashi in a winning effort. His first title since returning came on December 11, when he, Takanashi, and Sakaguchi defeated Damnation (Daisuke Sasaki, Mad Paulie, and Tetsuya Endo) for the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship. They lost the title on January 22, 2017, but Kudo, Takanashi, and Sakaguchi regained the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship for a record-tying sixth time on June 25, 2017. They were stripped of the title on October 10, 2017, when Kudo was sidelined with a concussion. Following his return, Shuten-dōji won the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship for a record seventh time by defeating All Out (Akito, Diego and Konosuke Takeshita) on December 10, 2017.

On April 17, 2019, Kudo announced an indefinite hiatus from professional wrestling. Simultaneously, the Shuten-dōji stable also announced an indefinite suspension of their activities.