Kanemaru debuted in 1996 for All Japan Pro Wrestling, in the last years of owner Giant Baba's regime, which had isolated the promotion from outsider wrestlers at the expense of the younger, lighter-weight talent.

His simple Bermuda shorts and boots were changed for tights and shinguards, and he began executing more high-risk maneuvers proper for a junior heavyweight.

This paid off well for Kanemaru, as he plowed through a field of unlikely but talented competitors to win a tournament for the first-ever GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship.

On December 5, 2010, Kanemaru lost the GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship to Kotaro Suzuki, ending his reign at 400 days, the longest in the title's history.

[8][9] On January 26, 2013, Kanemaru, Atsushi Aoki, Go Shiozaki, Jun Akiyama and Kotaro Suzuki, all of whom had quit Noah at the same time, announced that they had joined All Japan Pro Wrestling, forming the "Burning" stable.

[10] On February 23, Kanemaru brought Burning its first title, when he defeated Shuji Kondo for the World Junior Heavyweight Championship which he was denied in his first AJPW stint.

[12] On July 5, following a mass exodus led by Keiji Mutoh, it was announced that Kanemaru, along with the rest of Burning, had signed an exclusive contract with All Japan.

[14] On January 26, 2014, Kanemaru and Akiyama defeated former Burning stablemates Atsushi Aoki and Kotaro Suzuki to win the All Asia Tag Team Championship.

[23] On August 21, Kanemaru defeated Ryusuke Taguchi in the second round and Matt Sydal in the semifinals, before losing to reigning IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Kushida in the finals of the tournament.

Between October and November, he and Desperado took part in the Super Junior Tag League, advancing to the finals thanks to a record of five wins and two losses.

In June 2020, Kanemaru would enter the New Japan Cup tournament for the first time in his career, defeating Yuya Uemura in the first round, before losing to Taiji Ishimori in the second.

[32] In January, Kanemaru and Desperado lost the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships to Taiji Ishimori and El Phantasmo, ending their second reign at 134 days.

[35] In July at Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome, Kanemaru competed in the New Japan Rambo for the Provisional KOPW 2021 trophy, but the match was won by Chase Owens.

[36] The following month in August, Kanemaru and Desperado competed in the Super Junior Tag League, where they finished joint top of the block with 8 points.

[37] They had their title shot at Wrestle Grand Slam in MetLife Dome in September, where they defeated El Phantasmo and Taiji Ishimori once again to win their fourth IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship.

[42] On Night 3, Kanemaru and Suzuki-gun stablemate Zack Sabre Jr lost to Pro Wrestling Noah's Naomichi Marufuji and Yoshinari Ogawa.

[50] In October, Kanemaru competed in another tournament to crown the inaugural NJPW World Television Championship, but lost to David Finlay in the first round.

[53] The final match between the faction took place on December 23, where the team of Taichi, Sabre Jr, Kanemaru and Douki defeated Suzuki, Lance Archer, Desperado and Taka Michinoku.

[56][57] In February at The New Beginning in Sapporo, Kanemaru and Douki, challenged Catch 2/2 (Francesco Akira and TJP) for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships, but were defeated.

[62] Following the 2023 G1 Climax, Kanemaru suffered a supposed knee injury while fighting the House of Torture and went on a small hiatus for the remainder of the month of August.