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By the time you’ve made your way through the first few assassinations in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, you should have a pretty good idea of what to expect and how they all go down, from the scouting for objective markers to the final boss battle capping it all off.
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That being said, there are a few that buck that trend a little and have you doing some different things. A great example of this is The Naginata, the fourth target you’re likely to take down and one that’s a bit more personal to Yasuke than the others so far.
Lady Of Whispers
How To Find Lady Nene
What makes The Naginata assassination questline unique from the others so far is that it’s mostly centered around Yasuke’s past. Before you even get into the target-hunting, you need to go and meet a character called Lady Nene, who is located in the Hideyoshi Residence in Azuchi. As always, you can send Scouts to find the location, or just check the objective marker on the image above.
You’ve likely not had a reason to visit Azuchi at this point in the game, so make sure to hit some Synchronization Points on the way over to the mission. It’ll make fast-travelling much easier later.
Once you get to the location, you’ll need to fight off a few soldiers attacking a civilian. Since the quest mostly revolves around Yasuke anyway, I’d recommend playing as him to make the combat much easier. You’ll then be directed over to Sokenji Temple to meet Lady Nene, which leads to a lengthy cutscene between her and Yasuke that shows their history together.
This first chat with Lady Nene will also open up some more questlines for Yasuke, including some that will be revisited for other assassinations.
An Evening In Otsu
Where To Find The Setsu Bridge Lead
Once you’ve chatted with Lady Nene, you’re going to want to pursue the mission called An Evening In Otsu, which is located in the Otsu Upper District near Seta, as shown above. Once here, you’ll be told to find a lead on Setsu Bridge, which will be marked on your map for you. Get to the bridge and then rest there to pass the time until a duel is supposed to take place at night.
Once the duel has begun, your character will jump in and get involved, which leads to a battle against several ambushers. I played as Naoe here and didn’t have much trouble, but if you want an easier time it might be worth going in with Yasuke for the Level 18 enemies. Defeating the enemies will end the quest and open up a new path for you to follow towards the assassination.
Against The Koga-Ryu
How to Find Shotei And Katsuhime
Clearing that duel will result in a new mission popping up where you have to track down Shotei, who is located in the middle of the Shimmering Fields. It’s easy enough to find and there’s a nearby Synchronization Point to grab too which is always helpful. Once you get here and see the drunken Shotei, an ambush will begin and you’ll get to pick between Naoe and Yasuke.
As always, Yasuke is the better character to go with here since it’s a fight against several enemies, so pick him unless you really favour Naoe. Once the battle is finished, which won’t take long since they’re not tough enemies, you’ll be told to go and meet Katsuhime.
You once again get to pick whether to take control of Naoe or Yasuke before going to find Katsuhime. Naoe is faster and the temple has plenty of climbable areas, so she seems like the natural pick.
Katsuhime is located atop Enryakuji Temple, which we’ve marked on the map above. Once you reach the Temple, the objective will change to track down Katsuhime, but she’s easy to find since you just need to reach the top of the temple. You’ll have to defeat a few enemies along the way, but the amount of climbing around the temple makes this a good mission for Naoe regardless. Observe to find her location, and follow the sound of gunshots to reach her and have a chat about her helping you out with your mission.
Showdown In Sakamoto
Assassinating The Naginata
Here we are, the final event of The Naginata assassination quest. After heading to the location marked above in Sakamoto, you’ll start the mission out as Yasuke, who will have to make his way to an objective marker to take down Gamo Yoshimitsu at the Yoshimitsu Estate. He’ll be located in one of the houses within the estate (which you can find by Observing the area) and will challenge Yasuke to a duel when you reach him. You’ll have to fight a few enemies to get there, but that’s no problem as Yasuke.
Yoshimitsu is a relatively simple boss who shouldn’t give you too much trouble. He mostly focuses on a string of heavy attacks that can be a little tricky to keep track of, but they do provide plenty of openings for you to deal some damage to him. His most dangerous move is a heavy quick swipe that can come out of nowhere, so make sure you’re ready to dodge whatever he does next. With Yasuke’s healing potential, though, it’s not a tough fight and can just be a little long-winded.
The next part of the mission sees Naoe sneaking around The Armory to find and destroy three explosives that are dotted around the map. You won’t need to go far to find the explosives, though, as you just need to hold down LT on Xbox and L2 on PS5 to Observe and see their location as blue dots. Once you find the explosives, which are all found very close to one another, it’s as simple as throwing a kunai or shuriken at them to make them explode.
Shurikens are a part of Naoe’s toolkit that you’ll need to unlock in her skill tree at Knowledge Level 2. They’re far weaker than kunai but perfect for this mission since the explosives only take one hit.
Finding the explosives shouldn’t take too long or be much trouble, as long as you stick to the rooftops and avoid fights. The Armory is full of enemies, so make sure to cut down the reinforcement alarm in the middle of the area and you should be fine. You can then regroup with Katsuhime and continue the mission.
The final leg of the assassination will see you making your way through the temple to find The Naginata, Akechi Kagemitsu. You can choose between Naoe and Yasuke again and it’s a pretty even coin toss between who you want to go with. Yasuke can’t really stealth through the wall of enemies you’ll face, but he can take them head-on, while Naoe is better for sneaking over there but might have a hard time with the final boss.
I went with Yasuke for this mission to make the combat a bit easier. The location of Kagemitsu is marked on the map for you, so finding him isn’t going to be a problem. Getting to him is another story though, as you’re bound for a fight no matter who you pick. The best tactic is to take enemies on one at a time and try to separate them. It’s a good idea to go for the archers as well, as they’ll chip away at your health.
Defeating Akechi Kagemitsu
Once you reach Kagemitsu at the top of the tower, you’re in for a surprisingly challenging fight, made worse by the fact that there’s an enemy in the room with him when you get there. Take that guy out first, and then focus on Kagemitsu, who wields a Naginata with long reach. Like the other bosses, he’s very reliant on heavy attacks, which means you can get some decent openings while fighting him. He does have a few quicker attacks that can be parried, but for the most part you’re going to want to be dodging him.
Naginata is a tough enough foe that I’d recommend going with Yasuke over Naoe overall. Sure, the lead-up is more challenging but it means the boss will be a bit easier, even if you can’t stealthily whittle his health down.
Once you’ve defeated Kagemitsu, you’ll have wiped out another target from your list and also unlocked a Legendary Naginata for Yasuke to wield, the Sage’s Reach. This is one of the more powerful weapons in the game up until this point, so it’s well worth equipping and using from here on out.
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