Chongjin, closer to the Russian border. In 1910, Tokiwas boilers were replaced by Miyabara water-tube boilers and her six-inch guns were replaced by Japanese-built models. In December 1911, Iwate and Tokiwa were deployed to Port Arthur to keep order there during the Chinese Revolution. World War I The ship participated in the early stages of the Battle of Tsingtao before returning to Sasebo on 2 October 1914. The following month, Tokiwa was deployed to Singapore preparatory to searching for the German commerce raider , but the German ship was sunk before the mission began. The cruiser was assigned to the Training Squadron on 1 September 1916 preparatory to her departure on 5 April 1917 with Yakumo on a training cruise to ports in California, Hawaii and the South Sea Islands with cadets from the 44th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy. After her return on 17 August, the ship was relieved of her assignment to the Training Squadron on 25 August and sent to Honolulu, Hawaii in October to protect shipping from any German commerce raiders and to allow the US Navy to redeploy its forces to the Atlantic. Tokiwa was reassigned to the Training Squadron on 10 August 1918 and returned home to prepare for her next training cruise, together with Azuma, that began on 1 March 1919 for South Asia and Australia and again on 24 November 1919, also with Azuma, for Singapore, Southeast Asia, Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea. After her return on 20 May 1920, the ship was relieved of her assignment to the Training Squadron on 4 June. Tokiwa was reclassified as a 1st class coast-defense ship on 30 September 1921. Converted into a minelayer On 30 September 1922, Tokiwa began her conversion into a minelayer at the Sasebo Naval Arsenal. To accommodate her 200–300 mines, her rear 8-inch gun turret removed, as were the six 6-inch guns on the main deck. In addition, the number of light guns was reduced to two 12-pounders, although two 8 cm/40 3rd Year Type anti-aircraft (AA) guns were added. These modifications were completed in March 1924. The ship's stern suffered substantial damage in an accidental explosion in Saiki Bay on 1 August 1927 when fuzed mines were being disarmed. One mine detonated and then several others followed, killing 35 crewmen and wounding 65. Tokiwa was assigned to the reserve fleet after repairs. Tokiwa was assigned to