Suzutsuki is best known for her participation in Operation Ten-Go as one of the battleship Yamato's eight escort ships, where her bow was blown off by an American torpedo.

The Akizuki-class ships were originally designed as anti-aircraft escorts for carrier battle groups, but were modified with torpedo tubes and depth charges to meet the need for more general-purpose destroyers.

The ships carried enough fuel oil to give them ranges of 8,300 nautical miles (15,400 km; 9,600 mi) at speeds of 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph).

[4] The main armament of the Akizuki class consisted of eight 100-millimeter (3.9 in) Type 98 dual-purpose guns in four twin-gun turrets, two superfiring pairs fore and aft of the superstructure.

[6] On 6–7 April 1945, Suzutsuki escorted the battleship Yamato from the Inland Sea on her attack mission against the Allied forces fighting on Okinawa.

Her bow was torn off by a torpedo from aircraft of Task Force 58, but survived and returned to Sasebo, by steaming in reverse the whole way.

[7] She, her sister ships Fuyutsuki, Yukikaze, and Hatsushimo (sunk in late July by a mine off the Inland Sea), survived the ordeal, despite suffering heavy damage, but Yamato and five escorts – Yahagi, Asashimo, Kasumi, Hamakaze and Isokaze – were all sunk with heavy losses of life.

Mitsubishi Nagasaki Shipyard in the Pacific War built a total of 5 ships of the Akizuki class: Teruzuki, Suzutsuki, Niizuki, Wakatsuki, and Shimotsuki.

On September 10, Lieutenant Colonel Tsuguto Akazawa, commander of the destroyer Shiranui, the second ship of the Kagerō class, was appointed Chief of Equipment on the Suzutsuki.

She along with her sister ship Hatsuzuki were then transferred to the 3rd Fleet (Commander-in-Chief Lieutenant General Jisaburō Ozawa, 37th Naval Academy) on 15 January, and the 10th Squadron belonging to the 61st Destroyer Division.

In the early hours of January 16, Suzutsuki and Hatsuzuki found the American submarine USS Haddock surfaced off Shionomisaki, but escaped.

At the same time, on January 19, Akizuki in action in the Solomon Islands was wrecked in a torpedo attack by the submarine USS Nautilus.

On February 19, the 61st Destroyer Division (Suzutsuki and Hatsuzuki) advanced to the waters near Japan, and met with the Japanese fleet returning from Truk atoll to Sasebo after operations around Guadalcanal.

The fleet, commanded by Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita, was composed of the battlecruisers Kongō and Haruna, seaplane tender Nisshin, heavy cruiser Tone, and destroyer Shigure.

In preparation for Operation I-Go, an air offensive operation targeting the Solomon Islands and islands of New Guinea, on March 22, Suzutsuki along with three destroyers, the light aircraft carriers Jun'yō and Hiyō, and two heavy cruisers Tone and Chikuma arrived at Truk atoll on March 27–28.

On April 3, the heavy cruiser Aoba was severely damaged in an air raid in Kavieng, New Ireland, along with the surrounding area.

The 61st Destroyer Division (Suzutsuki, Hatsuzuki) carried the Nankai 4th Garrison and arrives at Buka Island on 22 July.

After that, the 61st Destroyer Division (Suzutsuki, Hatsutsuki) was engaged in transport missions between Truk, Rabaul, and Kwajalein Atoll from late July to early September.

As Suzutsuki was attempting to help with repairs, the light cruiser Agano, which was previously damaged by an air raid at Rabaul, was struck by a torpedo from the submarine USS Scamp (SS-277).

Suzutsuki, along with destroyers Hatsuzuki, Urakaze, Fujinami, Hayami, and the light cruisers Noshiro and Nagara escorted Agano back to Truk.

One torpedo struck the forward magazine, completely destroying the bow past the No.2 Type 98 100-millimeter (3.9 in) dual purpose gun.

On October 16, Suzutsuki was escorting transports from Keelung, Taiwan, but would come under attack from USS Besugo (SS-321), hit by another torpedo, and would sail back to Kure for repairs.

During an air raid on Kure Naval Port on March 19, Suzutsuki escorted the battleship Yamato in Hiroshima Bay.

While the wheel formation collapsed due to repeated rudder changes, Suzutsuki continued to cover Yamato’s port rear.

Due to the 150 kg bomb hit on Suzutsuki’s bow, completely destroying it, she was forced to reverse back to port at 20 knots.

At that time, the Suzutsuki crew consisted of about 100 people, and when she organized a farming team and a fishing team, she cleared the land (cultivating pumpkins and potatoes) and used the fishing boats she was given to procure food.During the intervening months of July and August, she engaged in anti-aircraft combat, including shooting down a P-51 Mustang with flak in August.

Today, a part of Yanagi's hull and information board can be seen near the exit of the Wakamatsu Canal in the Hibikinada Rinkai Industrial Park.