From 1586, Kiyomasa followed Hideyoshi in an expedition against Kyushu and when Narimasa SASSA, who entered Higo Province, was punished by being deprived of his fief due to his misgovernment, Kiyomasa was given about 195,000 koku, half of Higo Province, and made Kumamoto-jo Castle his castle where he usually resided.
天正14年（1586年）からは秀吉の九州征伐に従い、肥後国に入った佐々成政が失政により改易されると肥後の半国のおよそ19万5,000石を与えられ、熊本城を居城とした。