The train service was named after the title of novel Izu no Odoriko (The Dancing Girl of Izu) by Yasunari Kawabata.
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").