When he handed down his position to FUNYA no Watamaro and retruned to Kyoto one and a half years later, the situation there had completely changed because of the resignation of the Emperor Heijo and the Kusuko Incident, which occurred following the resignation led mainly by FUJIWARA no Kusuko who was from the the Ceremonial House of the FUJIWARA clan similarly to Otsugu.
1年半後、文室綿麻呂に職を譲って都に戻ってみると、平城天皇の退位とそれに続いて発生した緒嗣と同じ式家出身の藤原薬子が中心となった薬子の変により情勢は一変していた。