However, his commitment to the Sonno Joi philosophy and connections to the court nobles of Kyoto led him to side with the Hitotsubashi family during Iesada TOKUGAWA's conflict surrounding the shogun's successor, causing him to be viewed as a threat by Tairo (great elder) Naosuke II.
しかし尊皇攘夷に傾倒して京都の公家と関係を持ち、徳川家定の将軍後継者争いでは一橋派に与したため、大老の井伊直弼から危険人物と見なされた。