How to defeat Naosuke Li and Akikatsu Manabe in Rise of the Ronin

Naosuke Li and Akikatsu Manabe in Rise of the Ronin are some initial villain bosses you must defeat to progress further. In order to defeat them, you need to dodge their special attacks and counter them with lethal blows. Your special moves will be crucial in this quest, and through this mission, you will gain a good understanding of the fighting mechanics of the title.

You get to face Naosuke Li and Akikatsu Manabe in Rise of the Ronin at the end of Act 1/Chapter 1. The fight occurs in two phases: you will face off against Naosuke Li in the first phase, and then Manabe will join him in the second phase.

This guide provides all the information necessary to win against Naosuke Li and Akikatsu Manabe in Rise of the Ronin.

NOTE: This article is subjective and reflects the views of the writer.

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Tips to defeat Naosuke Li and Akikatsu Manabe in Rise of the Ronin

Fighting sequence against Naosuke Li (Image via Team Ninja)

Once the story mission Those Who Gather at Edo ends, The Sakurada Gate Incident mission will start. You will face off against hordes of enemies near the gate, and you can use the Fire Pipe in Rise of the Ronin to have a crowd-control weapon in your arsenal. After defeating the enemies, you will be instructed to go to Li Palanquin. You will come across Naosuke Li, and it will trigger the boss fight.

Follow the tips below to easily defeat Naosuke Li and Akikatsu Manabe in Rise of the Ronin:

• In the first phase, you only have to fight Naosuke Li. His main attack is sending shockwaves, and you must dodge the attacks or counter them with Countersparks to fill up his panic bar.
• Once Naosuke’s panic bar fills up, parry and hit him with multiple critical hits. Additionally, you will notice weapons that can be pulled by using the grappling hook. Use the grappling to throw the weapons on Naosuke to stagger him while he fights with your companions.
• Keep doing that until he loses half of his health. This will end the phase one of the boss fight with a cutscene.
• After that, Akikatsu Manabe, the Blue Demon, will appear to help Naosuke Li. The phase two fight will start once the cutscene ends.
• To defeat them, you must focus on handling Naosuke Li first. Use your companions to keep the Blue Demon busy. However, it would help if you kept Manabe in check. He might launch surprise attacks on you, which you must dodge.
• Target Naosu until he loses half his health and enters the Ki Blaze state. During this period, his attacks will be faster and more lethal. Keep dodging and carefully use Countersparks to increase his panic bar like phase one. Once the panic bar fills, take full advantage and use your special moves to defeat him.
• After defeating Naosuke Li, turn your attention to the Blue Demon, Akikatsu Manabe. Manabe swings his Katana thrice in basic attacks. Hence, dodge them and find an opening to use Countersparks. Moreover, he will use his grappling hook to pull you and throw rocks. Keep dodging to fill up the panic bar.
• After a certain point, he will use his special clones and attack from all sides. Notice the figure of Akikatsu that the camera keeps locking on to find the real body. Once done, use Countersparks till his bar fills up. Then, use your best damage-dealing critical hit moves to defeat him.

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That concludes our guide on defeating Naosuke Li and Akikatsu Manabe in Rise of the Ronin.

You can also check out our other guides:

Rise of the Ronin trophy list II How to defeat the Bladesmith II How to reset your Skill Points II 3 ways Rise of the Ronin is different from Sekiro