Purportedly the birthplace of Kusunoki, this site is located right beside the Chihayaakasaka-mura Folk Museum. Masahige (birth name: Tamonmaru) was born in what is now Chihayaakasaka Yamanoi in 1294. It’s believed that as a young boy he studied from the ages of 8 to 15 at the Kusunoki family temple, which was located in the Kanshin-ji Temple precincts. At that time, the Kamakura shogunate, which had persisted for more than 140 years, was beginning to decline. The country was entering a significant turning point in which political power was transferring from the samurai back to the hands of the emperor. From 1331 (the first year of the Genko Imperial reign) to 1333, Masahige fought against the Shogunate, achieved victory, and was ultimately appointed to a statutory office in the junior fifth rank as a war hero. However, in 1336 he was defeated at the battle of Minatogawa by Ashikaga Takauji (who had incited a rebellion against the emperor-centered political order) and committed suicide. In recognition of Masahige's achievements, Toyotomi Hideyoshi is said to have ordered Mashita Nagamori to survey the area in the Bunroku era (1592–1596) and build a small shrine to Masahige on top of an earthen platform. Then, in 1874 a stone monument was built at the suggestion of Meiji statesman Okubo Toshimichi. Every year on April 25th the Nanko Festival is held here.