On 18 July 1941, "Asama Maru" departed Yokohama with only 98 passengers, 47 of whom were Japanese-Americans born in the United States. However, on 24 July, in mid-Pacific, "Asama Maru" received orders to heave to and stop. On 26 July, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order to seize Japanese assets in the United States in retaliation for the Japanese invasion of French Indochina. That evening, the crew of "Asama Maru" painted her funnels black and painted out the Japanese flags on her hull and deck. On 27 July, a notice was posted that the ship was ordered back to Japan; however, after 36 hours, another notice was posted stating that the ship would resume her original course, and she docked in Honolulu on 31 July. She departed Honolulu for San Francisco on 1 August; however, on 4 August she was again recalled to Japan, arriving back at Yokohama on 10 August.