Before Yoshihisa was born, it had been decided that Yoshimasa's younger brother Yoshimi ASHIKAGA would be the next shogun; however, with the birth of Yoshimasa's son, a dispute over who would become the next shogun broke out between Yoshimasa and Yoshimi, and in the same year, Sadachika, Yoshihisa's foster father, schemed to discredit Yoshimi by starting a rumor that Yoshimi was planning a rebellion.
義尚誕生後に発生した次期将軍が決定していた義政の弟の足利義視との間で将軍後継問題が発生し、同年には義尚の乳父であった貞親は義視を排斥するために義視謀反の噂を流す謀略を行う。