Yoshida Shouyou originated as a benevolent split personality of the immortal Utsuro, sustained by high Altana concentrations. For centuries, Utsuro's body remained controlled by violent personas serving as a government assassin, but Shouyou manifested as a counterforce, suppressing these destructive impulses and taking control. His defection from the Tenshouin Naraku assassin group marked a turning point; during one mission, he rescued a dying slave child named Oboro by healing him with his immortal blood. Though warned of Naraku's dangers, Oboro chose to follow Shouyou, who expressed disillusionment with killing and planned to open a school. After escaping Naraku, Oboro sacrificed himself to protect Shouyou, allowing him to flee. While wandering Japan, Shouyou encountered a feral child, Sakata Gintoki, on a battlefield. Recognizing their shared trauma, he took Gintoki under his care, offering him a sword and later founding the Shoka Sonjuku school near a village. Young students like Takasugi Shinsuke and Katsura Kotarou attended the school, which welcomed impoverished children free of charge, teaching swordplay and philosophical ideals centered on self-discovery and resisting internal weakness.

Shouyou's pedagogy emphasized kindness and intellectual freedom, often tolerating unconventional behavior. He employed a distinctive disciplinary method—a light head tap knocking students into the ground—when they acted recklessly. His arrest by Naraku, orchestrated by a jealous and resurrected Oboro, led to the school's destruction. Before being taken, he tasked Gintoki with protecting the other students. This arrest, perceived by his pupils as unjust persecution for teaching dissent, catalyzed their involvement in the Joui War. Imprisoned, Shouyou continued teaching, including his jailer Mukuro. During a pivotal confrontation orchestrated by the Tendoushuu, he was forced to witness his slaughtered students' corpses. Gintoki was then compelled to choose between executing Shouyou or his captured comrades, Takasugi and Katsura. Choosing to honor his promise to protect his friends, Gintoki beheaded Shouyou. Simultaneously, Utsuro's original personality reemerged to eliminate all split personas, including Shouyou, believing death would end their suffering. Shouyou died smiling at Gintoki, grateful his students were safeguarded.

Shouyou's execution profoundly fractured his students: Takasugi embraced nihilistic destruction, Katsura initially sought revolution but later adopted moderate reformism, and Gintoki internalized deep guilt while upholding Shouyou's protective ideals through the Yorozuya. Shouyou's teachings endured culturally; Katsura and Takasugi preserved their textbooks, which later saved their lives, and Gintoki referenced them to condemn corrupt mentors like Jiraia. His appearance featured long light brown-grey hair, green eyes, and grey robes with a gentle smile, bearing resemblance to Katsura. His personality blended compassion with firmness; he freely educated the poor and showed unwavering patience, yet his disciplinary taps symbolized his commitment to tempering impulsiveness.

In the Silver Soul Arc, Utsuro's defeat resulted in his reincarnation as a rapidly aging child. Gintoki cared for this child, who retained Shouyou's memories. To prevent Utsuro's resurrection and evade Naraku, the child extracted his heart, entrusting it to Gintoki before his comatose body was seized. Cultists later revived his adult form using an artificial Altana heart. Upon awakening, Shouyou killed a Tendoushuu member and encountered a dying Takasugi, who pleaded for a peaceful life together. Shouyou refused, stating he could no longer embody his former identity. After Takasugi, briefly possessed by Utsuro, attacked him, Shouyou fled with Shinpachi Shimura and Kagura. He expressed regret for causing his students suffering, but Shinpachi countered that Shouyou's guidance shaped Gintoki into a pivotal figure in their lives. At the terminal's core, Shouyou sacrificed himself to neutralize overflowing Altana, disintegrating after a final reunion with Gintoki and the Yorozuya.