The Venerable Hakuei Ohtsuka, who was then a master of Yoshin-ryu Jujnjitsu, studied Karate under Funakoshi. However, Ohtsuka did not get along with Funakoshi's son Yoshitaka, thus he left Shoto-kan and founded Wado-ryu. It is said if the had not left Shoto-kan he could have been the head of Shoto-kan by his seniority, and that Shoto-kan would not be divided as it presently is.

Because of the influence of Yoshin-ryu Jujitsu, Wado-ryu relies heavily upon dodging techniques to avoid attacks. The style is currently split into two organizations, Wado-ryu and Wado-kai.