How To Beat Sanada Masatoyo (Nobutsuna's Students) in Assassin's Creed Shadows

Sanada Masatoyo will be your last opponent in the Nobutsuna’s Students quest in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Here’s how to take him down.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is a big game. It is an RPG and naturally has a lot of content for players in it. The Nobutsuna’s Student quest is a side mission in Shadows. During this sidequest, players will play as Yasuke and visit his old sensei, Nobutsuna. From that point onward, you will have to defeat six different opponents, and all of them will be disciples of Nobutsuna sensei.

However, the individual we are going to talk about today, Sanada Masatoyo, is not one of these six warriors we mentioned. Instead, he is part of a twist in the Nobutsuna’s Students questline. So without further delay, let’s unravel the mystery of Sanada Masatoyo and explore how you can find and defeat him in Nobutsuna’s Students sidequest in Assassin’s Creed Shadows.

How To Find and Defeat Sanada Masatoyo in Assassin’s Creed Shadows?

As we mentioned earlier, at the start of Nobutsuna’s Students’ mission, you will get six opponents. Once you have defeated all of them, you can go back to Nobutsuna Sensei’s house in the southwestern parts of Azuchi to collect your reward from Yasuke’s old teacher.

However, the moment you step foot in the house, you will notice that something is wrong. There, you will only find your first opponent, Marume Nagayoshi. When you speak to him, he will tell you that Nobutsuna Sensei has been murdered. This conversation will then unlock your seventh and last opponent in this sidequest, and he will be Sanada Masatoyo.

Go to the Sanada Estate

SS from AC Shadows — Enter the estate through the front door (Image via Ubisoft)

Masatoyo will be in his Sanada Estate. It is located northeast of the Susuka Foothills, in the Omi region. Fortunately, the foothills have a viewpoint that you can fast travel to if you have already unlocked it. Once you reach the Suska Foothills, go to the swamps east of it to find the Sanada Estate.

Once you reach the location and try to open the front gate, a cutscene will trigger. During this cutscene, Masatoyo will tell Yasuke his motivation for murdering Nobutsuna sensei. He will say that his reputation has been tarnished, and it is his turn to earn his glory back as a warrior. In addition to that, Sanada Masatoyo will also blame Yasuke for ruining his name, and this will start the duel.

This fight may technically be a boss battle, but it plays the same way as the other duels you encounter in the Nobutsuna’s Students questline. Sanada Masatoyo is a samurai and a traditionalist, so naturally he will be using a katana in the fight. However, you can choose any weapon you want, and the game does not restrict the player to using only a katana in this duel.

Take Sanada Masatoyo Down

SS from the game — Masatoyo is a samurai, and he fights like it (Image via Ubisoft)

Once the fight begins, you will instantly know what to do. Sanada fights like a samurai and has mainly two types of attacks. When his katana glows red, you will have to dodge out of the way to avoid getting damaged, since it signifies an unblockable attack. Furthermore, it is not the only trick in his arsenal because Masatoyo can also chain some quick strikes together and push you to the back foot. However, you can identify the quick slashes by the blue flash around Sanada’s weapon and can easily parry or block them.

Repeat this process to avoid any incoming attacks and create the opening for landing some offensive move of your own. We recommend that you use your active abilities wisely in this fight since they are a great way to deal some heavy damage. Once Sanada Masatoyo’s health hits zero, the duel will be over and a cutscene will begin. During it, Masatoyo will meet his demise, and Yasuke will honor the memory of his fallen Sensei one last time.

Lastly, when the cutscene is over, it will officially mark the end of Nobutsuna’s Students sidequest.

Rewards for Defeating Sanada Masatoyo

After you deliver justice to Sanada Masatoyo and complete the Nobutsuna’s Students quest, you will get the following rewards:

Crimson’s Edge (Legendary Long Katana)
2 Mastery Points
2000 XP

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How To Beat Sanada Masatoyo (Nobutsuna’s Students) in Assassin’s Creed Shadows