The daughter of Prince Kagami [ja] and supposed younger sister of Princess Kagami, Nukata became Emperor Tenmu's favorite wife and bore him a daughter, Princess Tōchi (who would become Emperor Kōbun's consort).
Nukata composed this poem in c. 661 at the harbor of Nikita-tsu in Iyo Province as an imperial fleet invaded Kyushu: 熟田津に船乗りせむと月待てば 潮もかなひぬ今は漕ぎ出でな Nikita-tsu ni funa norisemu to tsuki matebashio mo kanainu ima wa kogiidenaAt Nikita Harbor we have waited for the moonrise before boarding our boats.
[3] Nukata composed this poem in 658 when Empress Saimei went to a hot spring in Kii Province:[4] 莫器圓隣之大相七兄爪湯氣吾瀬子之 射立爲兼五可新何本 (Man'yōshū 1:9)A common interpretation for the later part of the poem is by Keichū: ...waga seko ga / i-tataserikemu / itsukashi ga moto (...我が背子がい立たせりけむ厳樫が本), which translates to "...my beloved who stands at the foot of the sacred oak".
Some theories[citation needed] include: According to Alexander Vovin, the first two lines should be read in Old Korean, whereby their meaning is similar to the one proposed by Sengaku:[5] 莫器圓隣之大相七兄爪湯氣我が背子が い立しけむいつか新顔 nacokʌ-s tʌrari θi-ta-po-n-[i]-isy-a=ca mut-ke waga seko gai-tatashikemu itsu ka niigaoAfter I looked up at the evening moon, I did ask: "My beloved probably went there on a journey.
"[6]Nukata composed this poem when Emperor Tenji was out hunting in Gamōno (or the field of Une, now part of Ōmihachiman and Yōkaichi, Shiga):[7] 茜草さす紫野行き標野行き 野守りは見ずや君が袖ふる akane sasu murasakino yuki shimeno yukinomori wa mizu ya kimi ga sode furuThrough the shining madder-red murasaki field and through the marked-off field I go.