Baruto had an excellent start to the January 2009 tournament, winning his first six matches. However, he began losing in the second week and finished on 9–6. By contrast, he struggled during the first week of the March tournament in facing the top ranked wrestlers and stood at 3–6 after nine days, but he maintained his rank with a "kachi-koshi" victory on the final day. He is the first "sekiwake" to hold his rank for four straight tournaments since his debut since Asashōryū in 2002. He lost the rank in May 2009, but fighting from the "maegashira" 3 position in July he produced a strong 11–4 record and returned to the "komusubi" rank for the September tournament. There he became the first non-"yokozuna" since Hoshi in 1986 to defeat five "ōzeki" in one tournament. He finished with a fine 12–3 record, guaranteeing his return to "sekiwake", and was awarded his fourth Fighting Spirit prize. He scored nine wins in the next tournament.