During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, "Yaeyama" participated in the naval Battle of Port Arthur and subsequent blockade of that port. Despite her small size and obsolescence, she was also present at the Battle of the Yellow Sea and the final decisive Battle of Tsushima, as well as the Japanese invasion of Sakhalin, where her high speed made her useful to carrying sensitive orders and messages between ships and from ship to shore.