Partially because his wife was a cousin of Takamori SAIGO on his mother's side, he was well-treated and given good positions, and fought bravely in the various battles in the Boshin War which started from January 1888, as the captain of the fourth unit of the Satsuma Domain, especially in the Aizu War.
妻が西郷隆盛の母方の従妹にあたり、その縁もあって重用され、慶応4年（1868年）1月にはじまった戊辰戦争では薩摩藩4番隊長として各地、特に会津戦争に奮戦した。