When Go-Daigo's attempt to seize power in 1331 failed (the Genkō War), Moriyoshi fled Enryakuji to the province of Kii, meeting up with Kusunoki Masashige.
As well as historical novels such as Araki Mataemon and Odoriko Gyojoki, Naoki wrote biographies of historical figures — including Kusunoki Masashige, Ashikaga Takauji, and Genkuro Yoshitsune — and contemporary social fiction, including Nihon no Senritsu ("Japan Shudders") and Hikari: Tsumi to Tomoni ("Light: With Crime").