"Tenryū" was laid down on 7 May 1917 and completed on 20 November 1919, at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal. Prior to World War II, she participated in the Siberian Intervention, Yangtze River patrols and supported the landings of Japanese troops along the China coast. During the early stages of the Pacific War, she participated in the Battle of Wake Island and the invasions of the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, Tulagi, and the Battle of Savo Island. Two of her torpedoes are credited with sinking . She was sunk after the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal by , and struck on 20 January 1943.