After defeating Gyoubu Oniwa, you may have thought you were in the clear for a bit when it comes to bosses, but Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is all too happy to prove you wrong by introducing the Blazing Bull as the true guardian of the Ashina Castle entrance. This fight is unlike any other you’ll face in Sekiro, so it’s understandable that many players struggle with it. However, with the right tools at hand and a good deal of patience, you will be able to beat the Blazing Bull.
The Blazing Bull boss fight is one of the most frantic in Sekiro, and you’ll spend the majority of it running at full pelt. This flaming, angry animal doesn’t often slow down, and you certainly don’t want to get in its way. Try to rush in and you’ll be punished, but take your time and this boss will quickly become a slow but easy challenge.
The trick to the Blazing Bull is landing a couple of hits in its rear, then running in circles. You’ll spend the majority of this fight chasing each other, and your goal is not to end up in front of the beast. Posture regenerates extremely fast, meaning you’ll basically be reliant on vitality damage here.
At the start of the fight you should stealth kill the first soldier, then move forwards while still hidden so that the bull tramples the two other guards ahead. They’ll go down instantly and you won’t need to worry about them during the fight.
You now need to spend your time sprinting after the bull, only landing hits when it slows down. The bull will spin by ducking a horn into the ground, and it’s here that you can strike with a couple of charged slashes. If you find yourself in front of its charge, don’t panic. You can block its attacks, then move back round behind it.
The only tool you’ll need during this fight is the Shinobi Firecracker. This will stun the Blazing Bull, but only when it’s up close. Use the Firecracker when the bull hits a wall or starts to turn as that should give you the time to deploy it. Don’t spam them as they cost a lot of emblems and can run through your supplies quickly.
If you catch the bull when it isn’t charging, it’s possible to stand behind and slightly to the side of it and get it stuck in a loop of leaning attacks with its horn that are easy to dodge. Strike blows between each of them, then back off and start chasing as soon as it falls out of this loop.
When the Bull is close to death it’ll begin going wild, bucking around and smashing across the arena. It’ll be more dangerous, but you should follow the same strategy of chasing from behind and only striking when safe. If you’re lucky the Blazing Bull will run into a wall and knock itself out, leaving you free to land a deathblow.
