In the ruins of the dilapidated Rashomon gate during a torrential downpour, three men seek shelter – a woodcutter, a priest, and a commoner. The woodcutter and the priest are visibly disturbed, recounting the details of a recent and perplexing event. A samurai has been found dead in the forest, and a notorious bandit is accused of killing him after allegedly raping the samurai's wife. The woodcutter claims to be the one who discovered the body, while the priest says he saw the samurai traveling with his wife earlier. Both appear deeply troubled by the incident's contradictory accounts as they relay the tale to their skeptical listener, the commoner.

The narrative structure of the story unfolds through a series of flashbacks as the events are recounted during the trial of the bandit. With no clear evidence, the truth is sought through testimonies, each varying significantly from the previous. The bandit confesses to the crime but boasts of a fair duel with the samurai, which resulted in his victory and the subsequent submission of the samurai's wife. The wife's account is markedly different – she claims to have been dishonored and abandoned, her version bearing the weight of her own shame and victimhood. These subjective narratives of truth and morality weave a complex web, challenging the notion of objective reality and revealing the deep human propensity for self-deception.