Yukio Mishima's final literary endeavor is inextricably linked to the profound symbolism he infused into its creation. Announcing his intention to craft a series of novels encapsulating all he had learned, Mishima viewed this tetralogy as the culmination of his literary career. Upon finishing the work in August, he ominously remarked that he had nothing else to accomplish but end his life. This declaration found a chilling echo in his choice to inscribe November 25, 1970, as the last line of the final volume—the very day he enacted his tragic demise following a dramatic confrontation with the Japanese army.

The tetralogy's reception in Japan displayed a fluctuating trajectory. The first volume garnered significant sales, yet the second saw a dip in popularity. The critical response to the third volume was notably lukewarm. This decline in reception may partly be attributed to Mishima’s political associations. While he maintained an ostensibly apolitical stance, his alignment with rightist groups since 1966 distanced him from the predominantly left-wing literary circles, potentially affecting his standing within them.

Despite varying public reception, Mishima’s tetralogy was hailed by his close friend and Nobel laureate Yasunari Kawabata as his magnum opus. The tetralogy’s appeal lies in Mishima’s masterful storytelling, characterized by a poetic flair that permeates his more than thirty published works. Mishima, who prioritized literary aesthetics, crafted tightly woven plots that were enriched by his expansive cosmopolitan literary influences. These qualities solidify his reputation as one of the most prominent and universally read Japanese authors of his era.