Saga Rebellion
The corvette was transferred to the new Imperial Japanese Navy on 6 June and was the flagship (and the most powerful ship) of the navy until the completion of the ironclad in 1878. "Ryūjō" sailed to Yokohama with a British captain shortly afterwards. "Ryūjō" was inspected by Emperor Meiji during a visit to Yokosuka Naval Arsenal on 21 November 1871 and he was hosted aboard the ship during a tour on 23 May 1872. The Emperor reviewed the fleet during its manoeuvres on 26 October. The ship participated in exercises off the island of Sarushima in Tokyo Bay on 19 January 1873 and escorted Foreign Minister Soejima Taneomi on his mission to Imperial China later in the year to demand recompense for the murders of Japanese sailors by Taiwanese aborigines in 1871. During the Saga Rebellion, the ship played a small role by ferrying the government's commander-in-chief and his staff to nearby Nagasaki in March 1874. Later that year she hosted the Home Minister Ōkubo Toshimichi.