Should You Kill Or Forgive Hattori Hanzo In Assassin's Creed Shadows

Are you thinking about whether you should kill or forgive Hattori Hanzo in Assassin's Creed Shadows? The legendary warrior and ninja has made a name for himself all across Japan. He also plays a pivotal role in the story. Eventually, Naoe will be at odds with him, and you need to choose your next move. Oh, and before we continue, we'd be remiss if we didn't mention that this guide obviously contains major spoilers.

Should you kill or forgive Hattori Hanzo in Assassin's Creed Shadows - Meaning of the Blade guide

The decision to kill or forgive Hattori Hanzo happens as part of a side quest called Meaning of the Blade. Here's what you need to know:

• Meaning of the Blade is one of Naoe's personal quests. You only gain access to it once you've defeated the 12 Shinbakufu members. Their leader, the Horseman, provides you with the necessary information upon meeting him.
• We also recommend tackling the Assassin Outpost objectives. One of the locations is fairly close to where you need to go, and the tasks are in keeping with the theme of Naoe searching for the remnants of the Kakushiba Ikki, a splinter faction of the Brotherhood.

If you track the Assassin's Creed Shadows Meaning of the Blade quest, you're told to go to Sakafuneishi, which is in the Yamato region. To be more specific, it's in the Asuka Rocks Basin area.

• You can follow the river south of Katsuragi to reach the place.
• Alternatively, if you're at the Yamato Assassin Outpost, you can just keep heading east.

Upon arriving at Sakafuneishi, you'll see a large stone slab on the ground. There's also a circular rock with the symbol of the Assassin Brotherhood. Simply interact with it to trigger a lengthy cutscene where Naoe remembers what happened to her the night that she was injured.

The slab will move after the cutscene, and you're free to check out the small underground chamber. Interact with the pedestal in the room to trigger another cutscene, as well as the arrival of Hanzo.

Hanzo admits his wrongdoings. We don't want to spoil all the details here, but Hanzo's actions are enough to send Naoe to a rage. You can decide whether to forgive or kill Hanzo in Assassin's Creed Shadows. Here's a quick summary:

• The first prompt asks if you want to forgive or attack Hanzo. Choosing to forgive lets bygones be bygones. Choosing to attack leads to yet another prompt.
• The second prompt (if you choose to attack) still has an option to forgive Hanzo, as well as the option to kill him.
• If you decide to kill him at this point, a battle ensues. However, Naoe ends up sparing Hanzo's life and forgiving him all the same.

If you choose to "kill" Hattori Hanzo, then you should be ready for one of the toughest boss battles in the game. If you're a bit underleveled, then a single strike from Hanzo is enough to finish off Naoe. Moreover, you need to contend with some of Hanzo's tricks:

• His smoke bomb causes you to lose lock-on targeting for a while.
• He can throw three kunai in a frontal cone.
• He has four-hit and five-hit combo sequences.
• He has feint attacks where the initial swing is unblockable, followed by one that can be parried, and then another that's unblockable.

Basically, you need to stay on the move, dodging and weaving as you go, while whittling down his health. Once he only has a sliver of HP remaining, a cutscene will trigger. Naoe will automatically forgive Hanzo here regardless, which concludes the quest. The only difference is that the legendary warrior is more battered and bruised, which is fitting due to what he's done.