was a samurai of the Ōuchi family

Ouchi family

The ' was one of the most powerful and important families in Japan during the reign of the Ashikaga shogunate in the 12th to 14th centuries descended from the Korean Baekje Dynasty's Royal family...

 who lived during Japan's early Sengoku period

Sengoku period

The or Warring States period in Japanese history was a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians in reference...

. He is famous for his role in restoring the Shogun

Ashikaga shogunate

The , also known as the , was a Japanese feudal military regime, ruled by the shoguns of the Ashikaga clan.This period is also known as the Muromachi period and gets its name from Muromachi Street of Kyoto where the third shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu established his residence...

 Ashikaga Yoshitane

Ashikaga Yoshitane

, also known as Ashikaga Yoshiki , was the 10th shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate who headed the shogunate first from 1490 to 1493 and then again from 1508 to 1521 during the Muromachi period of Japan....

 to power in 1508, and in building Saijō castle.

Ashikaga Yoshitane had been forced to flee Kyoto in 1490, after resisting efforts by Kanrei

Kanrei

or, more rarely, kanryō, was a high political post in feudal Japan; it is usually translated as Shogun's Deputy. After 1349, there were actually two Kanrei, the Kyoto Kanrei and the Kantō Kanrei....

 (Shogunal Deputy) Hosokawa Katsumoto

Hosokawa Katsumoto

was one of the Kanrei, the Deputies to the Shogun, during Japan's Muromachi Period. He is famous for his involvement in the creation of Ryōan-ji, a temple famous for its rock garden, and for his involvement in the Ōnin War, which sparked the 130-year Sengoku period.His conflicts with his...

 to control him as a puppet ruler. Ōuchi Yoshioki rose to his aid in 1507, gathering an army and marching on the capital, fighting his way through a great number of other samurai families along the way. Katsumoto's son and successor, Hosokawa Masamoto

Hosokawa Masamoto

a notable Deputy-Shogun of the Hosokawa clan of Japan, and son of Hosokawa Katsumoto. Masamoto was appointed to this very high rank during the year of 1486. However, for a brief period this title was lost by Hatakeyama Masanaga but was regained in time. When Ashikaga Yoshihisa died childless during...

, was killed, and his puppet shogun Ashikaga Yoshizumi

Ashikaga Yoshizumi

was the 11th shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1494 to 1508 during the Muromachi period of Japan. He was the son of Ashikaga Masatomo and grandson of the sixth shogun Ashikaga Yoshinori. Yoshizumi was first called Yoshitō , then Yoshitaka.Yoshizumi was adopted by the 8th shogun...

 removed. Awarded the fourth rank in the Imperial Court, Ōuchi remained in the capital, protecting Yoshitane, and supporting him and the Emperor

Emperor of Japan

The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...

 financially, until 1518, when he returned to his family's home in Yamaguchi

Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi

is the capital city of Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan.As of February 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population of 198,971 and a population density of 194.44 persons per km²...

.