æt ðə tˈaɪm ʌvðɪ ɐtˈæk ˌɔn pˈɜːl hˈɑːɹbɚ, hˈætsuːhˌɑːɹɹuː wʌz ɐsˈaɪnd tə dᵻstɹˈɔɪɚ dᵻvˈɪʒən twˈɛnti wˈʌn ʌv dᵻstɹˈɔɪɚ skwˈɑːdɹən wˈʌn ʌvðɪ ˌaɪdʒˌeɪˈɛn fˈɜːst flˈiːt təɡˌɛðɚ wɪð hɜː sˈɪstɚ ʃˈɪps , , ænd , ænd ɹᵻmˈeɪnd ɪn dʒˌæpənˈiːz hˈoʊm wˈɔːɾɚz ˌɔn ˈæntaɪsˈʌbmɚɹˌiːn pɐtɹˈoʊl.
At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hatsuharu was assigned to Destroyer Division 21 of Destroyer Squadron 1 of the IJN 1st Fleet together with her sister ships , , and , and remained in Japanese home waters on anti-submarine patrol.