Baki The Grappler: Does Baki end up beating Yujiro?

Baki Hanma and Yujiro Hanma are some of the strongest characters in Baki The Grappler. The series revolves around the titular hero who trains to become a strong fighter and tests his skills by fighting against some of the strongest and most brutal combatants from across the globe.

Throughout the anime, the father and son duo have been known for their superhuman strength. However, there is a question that has plagued the minds of several anime-only fans: whether or not Baki defeated his father, Yujiro Hanma.

The protagonist developed a lot of animosity towards his father, primarily because the latter murdered his mother. As the manga progressed, the protagonist attempted to surpass his father, who is considered the strongest fighter in the world. Interestingly, in the manga, the father and son duo fought against each other, and a winner was declared. However, the result wasn’t all that simple and was slightly complicated. Let’s take a look at who the winner was in that fight.

Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers from the manga series. Sportskeeda claims no ownership of the media used in this article unless otherwise stated.

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Did Baki actually defeat Yujiro in the series?

Baki did not technically win the fight, but at the same time, he received something from Yujiro Hanma he never expected. In the end, Yujiro acknowledges his son's strength and considers him an equal or a rival. For manga fans, this was one of the most hyped fights in the entire series, as the two went up against each other for many chapters.

During the fight, one thing was quite clear: Yujiro Hanma didn’t go all out from the beginning. There were plenty of situations during that fight when Baki was allowed to execute certain moves and techniques because Yujiro Hanma gave him an opening on purpose.

This goes back to Yujiro Hanma’s past because all he wanted was a son who would one day surpass him in the art of hand-to-hand combat. During that fight, there was a clear difference in the amount of wounds and bruises each of them had. The protagonist was absolutely battered since Yujiro destroyed him during that fight. In contrast, Yujiro Hanma appeared to be slightly bloodied but far healthier than his son.

A few panels after the fight, the father looked like he didn’t take any damage, but that was just the difference in their abilities that predicted the outcome. Suffice it to say, Yujiro Hanma was merely toying with his son throughout the whole fight. During their entire face-off, the protagonist forced his father to get serious for a brief moment while he was giving his best for the majority of the fight.

Yujiro offering his title to his son after the fight (Image via Keisuke Itagaki/Akita Shoten)

At the end of their face-off, Yujiro and his son had an important conversation. He said that selfish acts and willpower could cultivate the smallest amount of power. This established Yujiro to become the strongest creature on the planet in the manga. However, he proceeded to say that he could no longer be that selfish and presented the title of "The Strongest Creature" to Baki instead.

All the spectators standing around them started celebrating this declaration and passed over the title of "The Strongest Creature" to Baki. However, the protagonist spoke about how fighting is about standing tall and that he could no longer do that. Yujiro let go of his title while Baki announced his defeat. Thus, bringing an end to the father and son quarrel.

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