Despite spending all of pre-season and the first seven rounds on the sidelines, Latimer said, rather, than being frustrating, his time at the Blues had been refreshing.
"From where I came from in Japan - that was frustrating. But to come back here and give some input and help the team, that has been really refreshing," he said.
"The Japanese see a rugby game differently to Kiwis. The other reason was game time, that's where the frustration built up."
With fellow New Zealand loose forwards Messam and Michael Leitch - plus back Stephen Bates - also at Toshiba, Latimer's game time was limited. Japanese rules dictate that teams can select only three foreign players in a match day squad.
He added of the pleasure at being able to contribute to a new team environment, to say his piece and be heard: "In Japan you might say it but they won't take it on board. You find those things out."
Coach Umaga said Latimer's experience and input had been valuable, including: "His singlemindedness about how he does things. He's very forthright, which is what we need, in terms of his leadership but also the way he plays. The only issue has been trying to get him back on the field. We know that he's someone who looks after himself really well."
Latimer is involved in the defence group at the Blues, just as he was at the Chiefs during his time there which including winning two titles for Dave Rennie's men.
And while he has many happy memories from his time in Hamilton, there are no split loyalties.
"They [Chiefs] are running hot, I would have loved to have seen the boys beat them in the weekend, but it wasn't to be. It was close. I know how hard the Chiefs train and that they set high standards for themselves and this is the fruits of their labour, as we've seen so far this season."