As the successor to FUJIWARA no Narito, he became both the governor of Mutsu Province and the Chinju-fu Shogun (Commander-in-chief of the Northern Defense Forces), and took up arms against the Abe clan (of Mutsu Province) starting in 1051 (in what is known as the Zen Kunen no Eki (Former Nine Years' Campaign)).
藤原登任の後任として陸奥国守・鎮守府将軍となり、永承6年（1051年）から安倍氏(奥州)と戦う（前九年の役）。