 Returning to San Francisco on 21 August 1944, "Cree" sailed on 1 October to serve as retriever tug for a convoy to Eniwetok, returning to Pearl Harbor on`14 November.She cleared on 7 December on another convoy trip to Eniwetok, then continued to Guam and Ulithi on towing duty.She joined the screen of the replenishment group of the 5th Fleet at Ulithi on 8 February 1945 and sortied for the invasion of Iwo Jima, during which she stood by for salvage assignments, until returning to Ulithi to replenish on 5 March.