Kiso was one of five Kuma class light cruisers completed in 1920-1921; they were followed by the similar Nagara class ships. Even in her ruined and sunken condition, she displays the distinctive funnel caps of her class. Kiso was the only member of her class fitted with a seaplane hangar in her bridge and a flying-off platform on her bow. Although the flying-off platform was removed long before the war, she retained a high, flat-sided bridge similar to the later Nagara class. Four of the Kumas were sunk during WWII, but Kiso was the only one sunk in shallow water. She was lost to US carrier aircraft 13 November 1944, with very heavy loss of life. The hulk was refloated 15 December 1955 and towed away the following month.

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