Higo no Kami Tachibana Yoshitsugu was originally from Hitachi Province and later resided in Edo. Traditions differ as to whether he studied under Hojoji Masahiro or Hojoji Kunimasa, but he is firmly placed within the Hojoji lineage. Around the Kanbun era he received the court title Higo no Kami. During the Genroku period he served for a time as a retained smith of the Shimazu house, forging in Kagoshima -- confirmed by surviving works signed "Sasshu-ju Higo no Kami Tachibana Yoshitsugu" -- and in that province he exerted no small influence upon Satsuma smiths before returning to Edo.

Yoshitsugu's forging presents a tightly forged ko-itame-hada with mokume mixed in; ji-nie adheres thickly in minute particles and fine chikei enter abundantly, conveying an impression of antiquity. The shinogi-ji shows strong masame. His hamon is especially notable among the Hojoji lineage for conspicuous gunome, often displaying a juzu-ba-like manner in which gunome connect within a ko-notare framework; ashi enter vigorously, the nioi is deep, and nie adheres thickly and strongly -- at times approaching the intensity found in blades by Nagasone Kotetsu or Kazusa no Suke Kaneshige. Fine sunagashi runs throughout and kinsuji appear, yielding a bright nioiguchi. The boshi tends toward sugu with ko-maru, showing hakikake with well-attached nie. His finest works exhibit bold, expansive midare with yubashiri assuming a nijuba-like aspect, and coarse nie mixed in among the thick nie, producing a heightened martial vigor that distinguishes them even within his oeuvre.

Yoshitsugu's technical command places him among the most accomplished smiths of the Hojoji school, with a skill described as approaching the level of Kotetsu and Kaneshige. His katana frequently bear cutting-test inscriptions -- though those by Yamano Kanjuro Hisahide, who appears to have had a close connection with Yoshitsugu, are exceedingly rare and carry high documentary value. One example records "two bodies, severed" by the noted tester Takaya Jintayu. His large-format blades made for Satsuma warriors, with their notably high curvature unusual for Shinto work, attest to a smith who adapted his output to serve the martial needs of his patrons while maintaining the hallmark depth of nioi and richness of nie that define the Hojoji idiom.