The Vjun Mission represented an attempt by Yoda to persuade Count Dooku to rejoin the Jedi Order and support the Galactic Republic. However, Dooku had orchestrated it as a ruse to trap Yoda and inflict a devastating blow against the Republic's forces.
The roots of the Mission can be traced back to 83 BBY when Dooku was still a Padawan. At that time, Yoda encountered him in the Room of a Thousand Fountains, where the young Dooku was playing with a seashell. Their conversation revolved around the meaning of "home" and Dooku's anxieties about potentially losing the Jedi Temple as his home. He likened his feelings to a hermit crab's shell, observing that the crab consistently seeks larger shells as it grows.
Despite Yoda's suspicion of a trap, he still sought to reclaim the Count for the Jedi and the Republic. Therefore, he collaborated with Republic Intelligence to arrange for an actor, renowned for portraying Yoda, to publicly depart from Coruscant aboard a Delta-7 Aethersprite-class light interceptor. Yoda's companions included Jedi Masters Jai Maruk and the Gran female Maks Leem, along with their respective Padawans, Scout and Whie Malreaux. Scout, a rebellious girl with limited Force-sensitivity, was on her inaugural mission, while Whie, the former heir to Château Malreaux on Vjun, had been brought to the Jedi Temple as a child upon the discovery of his Force-sensitivity. Vjun had been plagued by turmoil due to generations of inbreeding aimed at cultivating Force-sensitive traits within the population.
The mission proved to be a trap, as Asajj Ventress, one of Dooku's Dark Jedi agents, located and captured the Yoda decoy. Upon realizing the deception, Ventress intercepted the real Yoda at Phindar Spaceport. During the ensuing confrontation, she killed Jai Maruk and Maks Leem, while her escorting assassin droids unleashed chaos in the concourse. Eventually, the "orphaned" Padawans, Scout and Whie, joined Yoda as they continued their journey to Vjun. At Château Malreaux on Vjun, the mission reached a stalemate. Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Padawan Anakin Skywalker arrived at the palace, while Scout and Whie, along with his family droid Fidelis, survived a battle with Ventress. Dooku's attempts to corrupt or eliminate Yoda were unsuccessful. Ultimately, Dooku escaped Vjun, while Yoda, Kenobi, and the Padawans returned to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.
Following his return to Coruscant, Obi-Wan Kenobi was granted membership in the Jedi Council in recognition of his wartime heroism. As Council seats were traditionally reserved for Jedi Masters, Kenobi was also elevated to that rank. He then took the opportunity to construct a new lightsaber.
Due to his heroic actions during the Battle of Praesitlyn, Yoda and Jedi Master Mace Windu had secretly agreed to bestow the title of Jedi Knight upon Anakin Skywalker. However, they first needed to consult with their fellow council members for the decision to be ratified. Consequently, a Council meeting was convened to address the dwindling number of Jedi Knights and the increasing demand for Generals on the battlefronts of the Clone Wars. During the discussion, the topic of Separatist General Grievous arose, prompting Ki-Adi-Mundi to remind his colleagues of his encounter with Grievous on Hypori, emphasizing the General's threat to the Jedi Knights.
As he had pledged to his Padawan after the Praesitlyn victory, Kenobi proposed that the traditional Jedi Trials be waived in Skywalker's case to help augment their numbers. For months, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine had been advocating for Skywalker's promotion to Jedi Knight, but these requests had been consistently rejected, as politicians lacked authority over internal Jedi matters. Despite Skywalker's lack of formal trials, Kenobi argued for his apprentice's early promotion, citing his confrontation with Ventress on Yavin 4 as a test of skill and the loss of his arm to Count Dooku on Geonosis as a Trial of the Flesh. Furthermore, Kenobi asserted that the war itself had provided numerous Trials of Courage, all of which Skywalker had successfully navigated. This proposal sparked controversy; Kit Fisto and Ki-Adi-Mundi openly and enthusiastically supported Skywalker, while Oppo Rancisis and Adi Gallia questioned his maturity, and the consensus was that he still had to face his last trial, in which his spirit would be tested. Ultimately, the decision rested with Yoda, who resolved to have Anakin Knighted in a secret ceremony.
Upon arriving at the temple, Skywalker was reprimanded by Kenobi for his tardiness. Master and apprentice engaged in another argument, during which the Padawan unfavorably compared Kenobi to Qui-Gon Jinn. Immediately realizing the gravity of his insult, Skywalker retracted his statement, but Kenobi remained unperturbed. Instead, he cryptically informed the Padawan that their relationship as master and apprentice was nearing its end, as he led Skywalker into the darkened council chamber. As the young man stood in the center of the chamber, the Jedi Council members, including Kenobi, ignited their lightsabers in a ritualistic display of honor for the Chosen One. Yoda beckoned Skywalker to kneel before him, and the Grand Master knighted him as a Jedi Knight of the Galactic Republic, severing the young man's Padawan braid to conclude the ceremony. Following the ceremony, Yoda informed Skywalker that his greatest test was yet to come. Skywalker later sent the braid to his wife, Padmé Amidala, as a keepsake. Amidala reciprocated by gifting her astromech droid, R2-D2, to her husband. Skywalker promptly put the astromech droid to use in his new Eta-2 Actis-class interceptor.