In 1441, when the Kakitsu War began and his nephew Yoshitaka ASHIKAGA was backed up by Mitsusuke AKAMATSU during the war, Yoshitaka's younger brother Yoshimasa ASHIKAGA (secular name) was beheaded and his head was sent to Kyoto at the end of July, since Kenchin resigned as the head of Rokuon-in Temple.
嘉吉元年（1441年）に起きた嘉吉の乱で甥にあたる足利義尊が赤松満祐に擁立され、義尊の弟（俗名足利義将）の首級が京都に送られて来た7月末以降に鹿苑院主を辞任。