At the time of the Battle of Tsushima on 27 May 1905, "Itsukushima" was the flagship for Vice Admiral Kataoka's 3rd Squadron. "Itsukushima" opened fire on the Russian cruisers and at around 1630 at a distance of . Fighting continued past sundown, with the Japanese squadron sinking the repair ship "Kamchatka" and the battleship . During the first day of the battle, "Itsukushima" took no damage. After participating in accepting the surrender by Russian Admiral Nebogatov of the remaining ships in the Russian formation on 28 May, "Itsukushima" began a search for any stragglers who might attempt an escape towards Vladivostok. She returned to patrols in the Korea Strait on 30 May.