Numerous official missions of envoys, priests, and students are sent to China in the seventh century.

Some remain twenty years or more; many of those who return became prominent reformers.

In a move greatly resented by the Chinese, Shotoku seeks equality with the Chinese emperor by addressing a memorial "From the Son of Heaven in the Land of the Rising Sun to the Son of Heaven of the Land of the Setting Sun."

Shotoku's bold step set s a precedent: Japan never again accepts a subordinate status in its relations with China.

Although the missions continue the transformation of Japan through Chinese influences, the Korean influence on Japan declines despite the close connections there had been during the early Kofun period.