Eldest son of Kitabatake Chikafusa. Under the Kenmu Restoration, he was appointed Governor of Mutsu and Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Defenses at just 16, escorting Prince Noriyoshi (later Emperor Go-Murakami) to the northeast. When Takauji rebelled, Akiie marched a great army from Oshu and briefly recaptured Kyoto in 1336. Forced to retreat by Takauji's counterattack, he launched a second western campaign in 1338, marching through Kamakura toward the capital, but was defeated and killed at the Battle of Ishizu in Izumi Province by Ko no Moronao's forces at just 21. His military genius in leading two long-distance campaigns from Oshu to Kyoto is remarkable. His memorial to the emperor written just before his death is celebrated as a brilliant critique of the Kenmu government's failures.

A prodigy excelling in both letters and arms. He combined the leadership to command great armies at a young age with the intelligence to perceive the government's flaws. He was hailed as a "wise general for the ages."

A young hero who fell at 21, he stands alongside Kusunoki Masashige as a symbol of the Southern Court cause. His memorial document is read as a masterpiece of Japanese political writing. He is enshrined at Ryozen Shrine in Fukushima.