Sekiro boss guide: Ashina Elite – Jinsuke Saze

Sekiro’s Ashina Elite – Jinsuke Saze boss feels impossible to beat the first time you face him. He might even feel impossible to beat after a dozen tries. But once you get over the initial frustration and panic, you can get you past him without too much trouble.

This guide will show you his moves and walk you through how we beat him.

Approach and preparation for Ashina Elite – Jinsuke Saze

Jinsuke Saze is waiting for you right next to the Ashina Castle > Upper Tower – Ashina Dojo Sculptor’s Idol. There aren’t even any extra enemies to worry about — this is just a fight between you and him.

You also don’t actually need any skills or Prosthetic Tools for this fight. You already have the only abilities you’ll need — Step Dodge and Dodge Counterattack. If you want something a little fancier, you can’t go wrong with the Ichimonji Combat Art (but that’s just because we like it).

Ashina Elite – Jinsuke Saze boss fight tactics

Jinsuke Saze really only has two moves. The first is a punch that you can block easily. The second is an attack that starts and ends with his sword sheathed. In between, he slices at you a couple times. If you’re blocking, it’ll eat a big chunk of your Posture gauge and knock a lot off of your Vitality. If he catches you not blocking, it’s basically a one-hit kill.

Luckily, there’s a very obvious tell that he’s about to attack: a glint off his sword. Your only task in this fight is to watch for that glint, then Step Dodge to the left (opposite his sword). Follow every successful dodge with a Dodge Counterattack (just press the attack button). And that’s it. In the video above, you can watch us do this three times in a row.

In the seven seconds of that video, we filled his Posture bar about a quarter of the way and knocked about a third off of his Vitality. He’ll back off and let his Posture Damage drain away to drag out the fight, but just stick with the Step Dodge and Counterattack. Don’t worry about attacking him any other time. Just block constantly and wait for that glint. Keep repeating the same move until you get through both of his Deathblows.

Ashina Elite – Jinsuke Saze rewards

Defeating Jinsuke Saze will earn you a Prayer Bead. Four of these turn into a Prayer Necklace to increase your max Vitality and Posture. Before you move on, duck into the room to the right of the dojo to find some Scrap Magnetite.