Kamikaze continued to patrol northern Japanese waters until early 1945 when she was transferred to the Singapore area.

During sea trials, the ships comfortably exceeded their designed speeds, reaching 38.7 to 39.2 knots (71.7 to 72.6 km/h; 44.5 to 45.1 mph).

[6] On completion, Kamikaze was assigned to Destroyer Division 1, based in the Ōminato Guard District and charged with the defense of Japan’s northern waters.

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Kamikaze was still based at Ōminato, and was assigned to patrols from the Chishima Islands to the southern coasts of Hokkaidō.

In June 1942, Kamikaze helped provide cover for the Japanese forces during Operation AL, the diversionary invasion of the Aleutian Islands during the Battle of Midway.

[8] The transports were filled with naval personnel and fishery workers being removed to the homeland for the winter from the islands of Shimushu and Paramushiro.

[8][9][10] The Seal evaded depth charging by Kamikaze and Fukue and the remainder of the convoy reached Otaru unharmed.

On 26 January 1945, she departed with a convoy from Moji bound for Singapore, but was assigned detached duty at the Mako in the Pescadores.

[7] In May 1945, Kamikaze sortied twice from Singapore as escort to the cruiser Haguro on emergency transport missions to the beleaguered Japanese garrison in the Andaman Islands.

During the second sortie, on 16 May, Haguro was sunk in surface action with the Royal Navy, and Kamikaze suffered 27 crewmen killed and 14 injured in battle with the British destroyer group.

Hawkbill was able to get away, and after the war the ships' captains, Hitoshi Kasuga and Worth M. Scanland exchanged letters praising each other.