Red Fuji represents his anger at World War II, when Japan was moving toward a catastrophic situation, and at his inability to work as a painter as much as he would like. In the year of the release of this work, air raids were conducted by the U.S. military around the country. This work would be based on “Rainstorm Beneath the Summit,” one of Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji. Faced with a situation in which he could not even hold an exhibition,  Ryūshi put his anger on the red Fuji, which was originally supposed to be a symbol of good omen.
In addition, two weeks before he created this work, his wife of nearly 40 years, Natsuko, passed away due to illness. The black clouds that cover the foot of Fuji and the lightning that emanates from them seem to be his lamentations.