Onryo started his career as
Wolf Ozawa in the
Tokai University backyard wrestling promotion, where he was eventually discovered by
Men's Teioh and invited to train in the Wrestle Yume Factory. There he adopted the
gimmick of
Onryo, an undead wrestler based on the
Japanese folklore ghosts of the same name. Under this character, Onryo wore
pale facepaint and shabby clothes that released
ashes with each movement, and elements of his gimmick included the ability to turn
invisible to his opponents and disappear at will. Onryo gained popularity and began appearing in promotions like
Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi,
Wrestle Association R and
Dramatic Dream Team before eventually signing with
Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling (FMW) in 2000. He also participated in that year's
Super J-Cup, eliminating
Curry Man before being eliminated himself by
Cima. His FMW tenure would be the most prolific one, however. He participated in a feud with
Goemon about a cursed championship that slowly killed his champion, which was revealed as the reason why Onryo became a ghost in the past. In 2003, Onryo founded
Wrestling of Darkness 666, also known as simply 666 (Triple Six), along with The Crazy SKB. Along with his participations in 666, he found his niche in
Big Japan Pro Wrestling teaming with (and occasionally facing)
Men's Teioh in cruiserweight matches. ==Championships and accomplishments==