Ogami Itto is the central protagonist of the anime Lone Wolf and Cub. He is introduced as the Kogi Kaishakunin, the official executioner of the Tokugawa shogunate during Japan's Edo period. In this role, he was responsible for beheading samurai and feudal lords who had been ordered to commit seppuku, bringing their ritual suicide to a swift end as an act of mercy. His position carried great authority, and he was permitted to wear the hollyhock crest of the Tokugawa clan, which meant he acted with the authority of the shogun himself. Before his downfall, he was a respected figure within the shogunate, having served it for many years.

His background is shaped by betrayal. Itto won his post by shielding the shogun during a contest to choose the executioner, stepping between the shogun and the sword of his opponent, Gunbei Yagyu. This enraged Gunbei's father, Yagyu Retsudo, the leader of the shadow Yagyu clan, who had sought the executioner position for his own family. Retsudo orchestrated a plot to destroy Itto: his wife Azami was murdered along with the rest of his household, and a funeral tablet bearing the shogun's crest was secretly placed in the Ogami family shrine. When the tablet was found, Itto was falsely condemned as a traitor and ordered to commit seppuku along with his infant son. He refused, fought his way free, and was declared an outlaw.

Personality-wise, Itto is a man of very few words who lives by a harsh and uncompromising code. He is stoic, disciplined, and utterly resolute, showing little emotion even in the face of mortal danger. His word is absolute; once he accepts a contract and is paid, he pursues the target without hesitation or deviation. Beneath this severity, however, is a deeply caring father. His relationship with his son is the emotional core of his character, and he governs his entire existence around the boy's survival and education. He frequently states that a father knows his child's heart as only a child can know his father's, and this bond is shown through his constant attention to Daigoro's safety, health, and moral development.

His motivations are rooted in both vengeance and duty. He sets out on the road to hell, a path he calls meifumado, vowing to destroy the Yagyu clan and avenge his wife's death and his own disgrace. To survive and fund his quest, he works as an assassin for hire, charging a standard fee of five hundred gold pieces and demanding that his employers explain the full circumstances of the assassination before he accepts. Over time, his motivation remains fixed on the final confrontation with Yagyu Retsudo, and he carefully saves money and gathers weapons, including explosives, for the coming battle.

In the story, Itto serves as the protagonist and drives nearly every narrative development. He travels across Japan pushing his son in a specially built wooden cart, taking on assassination contracts that bring him into contact with corrupt lords, ninja clans, impoverished farmers, and desperate commoners. Through these encounters, the story explores the violence and social structures of the Edo period while steadily advancing his quest for revenge. He eventually kills all of Retsudo's children and obliterates the Kurokuwa ninja clan, chipping away at the power of the Yagyu until only the patriarch remains.

His key relationships define his character. The most important is with his son Daigoro, who travels with him at all times and is raised to be a warrior. Itto tests the boy's resolve at an early age by offering him a choice between a ball and a sword, and Daigoro's decision to reach for the sword determines that he will walk the assassin's road alongside his father. His wife Azami, though dead before the main journey begins, remains a motivating presence, and her memory fuels his vengeance. His archenemy is Yagyu Retsudo, the cunning and ambitious patriarch whose plot destroyed the Ogami family; their conflict spans the entire story and culminates in a climactic duel. Along the way, Itto also forms brief but meaningful bonds with people he helps or spares, and his reputation follows him wherever he travels.

His development is gradual and tragic. He begins as an honorable official of the shogunate, becomes a hunted outlaw and hired killer, and gradually wears himself down through years of bloodshed and fatigue. He maintains his code throughout, but the journey costs him more each step. Even as he destroys his enemies, he is weighed down by the violence. The final battle with Retsudo comes after his sword has been secretly damaged by a Yagyu agent, and Itto, already weakened by a lifetime of fighting, receives wounds that prove fatal. He dies during the duel, but his son takes up the broken spear and charges at Retsudo, who opens his arms and embraces the boy, naming him grandson of his heart and ending the cycle of vengeance.

His abilities are considerable and well documented in the story. Itto is a master swordsman of the Suio-ryu school and is widely regarded as the most skilled swordsman in Japan. He carries a dotanuki battle sword and is capable of killing opponents with a single stroke, even under severe disadvantage, such as fighting while carrying his son on his back or with sunlight shining directly into his eyes. His skills extend beyond swordplay. He is deeply knowledgeable in military strategy, understands the political landscape of the shogunate, and often anticipates his enemies' plans before they unfold. He is also trained in techniques such as suemono giri, the cutting of stationary objects, and proves adept with thrown weapons, including an arrow that takes out one of Retsudo's eyes. His endurance, calm under pressure, and willingness to sacrifice everything for his goal make him a nearly unstoppable force throughout the series.