The series is loosely based on the serialized two-volume novel by Koichi Iiboshi that chronicles the Hiroshima gang war that lasted nearly twenty five years. The series revolves around Shozo Hirono, an ex-soldier living in Hiroshima after World War II. Battles without honor & humanity: In the teeming black markets of postwar Japan, Shozo Hirono and his buddies find themselves in a new war between factious and ambitious yakuza. After joining boss Yamamori, Shozo is drawn into a feud with his sworn brother's family, the Dois. But that's when the chivalry ends and the hypocrisy, betrayal, and assasinations begin. Deadly fight in Hiroshima: Repeatedly beat to a pulp by gamblers, cops, and gangsters, lone wolf Shoji Yamanaka finally finds a home as a Muraoka family hit man and falls in love with boss Muraoka's niece. Meanwhile, the ambitions of mad dog Katsutoshi Otomo draws our series' hero Shozo Hirono into a new round of bloodshed, culminating with the tragic demise of the young Yamanka. Proxy war: The successor to Hiroshima's most powerful yakuza family, the Muraokas, is whacked in broad daylight. Developing into a yakuza succession crisis, the weaseley Uchimoto dithers while backstabbing boss Yamamori takes over as head of the Muraoka family. Once again, Shozo Hirono is caught in the middle, and all-out war is unavoidable. Police tactics: The cops crack down under pressure from the public and the press, adding a new dimension to the war for power among the yakuza families of Hiroshima. Takeda tries to keep a lid on things but hotheaded underlings create chaos, with one boss whacked in neutral territory, and Shozo Hirono plotting to finally take out longtime nemesis, boss Yamamori. Final episode: In the wake of a big police crackdown, Akira Takeda attempts to transform the Hiroshima yakuza families into a legitimate political organization: The Tensei Coalition. When the young Matsumura ascends to the chairmanship of the coalition, the older, hardened yakuza led by Jo Shishido seize one last opportunity to stir up chaos and bloodshed.