text: A second walking tour in 1802 lasted three months and was a tour along the Tōkaidō Post Road. On this tour,  visited many places that would appear in his future work. He also encountered people of various social standing and professions. His travels coincided with extensive flooding across the nation.  witnessed recent destruction and displaced peoples all along the road. These encounters and experiences made their way into 's novels and lent them an honesty that would make his works popular through the entire social strata of Japan.
  From 1803 to 1813,  published thirty historical novels, marking the beginning of his full career as a professional writer. Several of these works were adapted to various forms of theater across Japan. By 1810  was making a comfortable living as a writer, exceeding the stipend that had been allotted to his family while they served under  and he was considered the preeminent author of historical novels.
  This success was partly due to his collaboration with famous artists. Between 1804 and 1815,  and the creative illustrator  collaborated on 13 works. In particular, , published between 1807 and 1811, which borrowed the concept of The Tale of Hōgen, Taiheiki and Water Margin. There are various theories as to why  and  dissolved their cooperation, such as discordant personalities and conflicting opinions on how to draw illustrations. By 1818, with the purchase of a second household with the profits of his book sales and wife's business, the  family was officially restored. In 1820, 's son,  was appointed clan physician by Lord  making his social class officially  and  felt his family's future was secured.