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Makino Narisada, the sobayonin of the fifth shogun Tsunayoshi, deeply devoted himself to Yoshinji and rebuilt its halls with his personal fortune during the Kanbun era. As Tsunayoshi's most trusted aide, Narisada's patronage transformed Yoshinji into a major temple in the Honjo district.

The fifth Tokugawa shogun Tsunayoshi repeatedly issued the 'Edicts on Compassion for Living Things' from 1687 (Jokyo 4) through the Genroku and Hoei eras, pursuing an extreme animal-protection policy rooted in his own dog-year faith and his mother Keishoin's Buddhist compassion — punishing those who harmed dogs with exile or even death. To house Edo's stray dogs, compounds were initially built at Kitami, Yotsuya, and Okubo, but in 1695 (Genroku 8) a massive Okakoi Goyo-yashiki was established at Nakano. At its peak it spanned 300,000 tsubo and housed 100,000-300,000 dogs, consuming up to 98,000 ryo annually — hundreds of billions of yen in modern terms — with the burden of the 'inufuchi' (dog-keeping tax) falling heavily on commoners. Upon Tsunayoshi's death on the tenth day of the first month of 1709 (Hoei 6), his successor Ienobu immediately abolished the Edicts and the compound was swiftly dismantled. The bronze dog statue before Nakano Ward Office symbolizes the deep mark that the 'Dog Shogun's' reign left on Nakano's geography and place-names (Kakoi-machi).

The fifth shogun Tsunayoshi suffered from a chronic ailment that was cured by Sugiyama Waichi's acupuncture. Deeply grateful, Tsunayoshi granted Waichi vast lands in Honjo-Hitotsume and offered to grant any wish. Legend has it that Waichi, rather than asking for personal gain, wished to regain his sight. This land became the origin of Ejima Sugiyama Shrine.