Rise of the Ronin’s Bond Missions offers interesting insights into what drives its many supporting characters. Acting as supporting chapters to the game’s sprawling narrative, they also act as efficient ways to unlock upgrades, equipment, combat styles, and even romance options for your Ronin.

Most Bond Missions are automatically added to your map upon meeting the unlock requirements for them. What’s more, you can easily check your Bond Level with any given character or area from the Bonds section on your in-game menu. Simply press the Options button on your console and use the shoulder buttons to navigate to it.

A Man of Culture

Yukichi Fukuzawa is a Japanese samurai whose initial mistrust of your Ronin quickly makes way for a more friendly disposition. With a mind as sharp as his sword, he soon becomes a very useful ally both in and out of combat, combining traditional Japanese remedies and modern Western medicine with increasing tenacity.

SUGGESTED: How To Complete the In Search of New Knowledge (Bond Mission) in Rise of the Ronin

His Bond Missions explore his thirst for knowledge and his devotion to improving the Japanese way of life while staying true to its roots. In many ways, Yukichi serves as a counterpart to your own Ronin, striving to make the distant dream of a better future for Japan as a nation.

How to Complete the In Search of New Discoveries Bond Mission in Rise of the Ronin

In Search of New Discoveries is the second Bond Mission that can be completed for Yukichi, taking place in Edo during the second act of the game’s narrative. You will need to complete his first bond mission In Search of New Knowledge in Yokohama in order to unlock this mission.

If you happen to have missed out on this one, you could always use the Testament of the Soul back at your longhouse to return to Yokohama and complete it.

You also need to progress the main story to the point where you meet Kaishu Katsu and begin to work with him as part of the main story. You can find Yukichi at Katsu’s manor in Edo, and interacting with him there begins the mission.

Yukichi informs you that the soil from bamboo trees when they are flowering could contain materials useful to developing a cure for cholera, a goal that he shares with the doctor Ine Kusumoto. This story beat can be continued in Ine’s final Bond Mission Cultivating the Cure.

Yukichi asks you to meet him outside of a temple in the Meguro region. Find Yukichi at this point and interact with him to start the mission. He informs your Ronin that the temple is heavily guarded to prevent thieves from making off with flowers from its bamboo trees and that the two of you will need to take on a stealthy approach once inside.

Like his previous Bond Mission, Yukichi asks you to avoid killing anyone which can be easily done by equipping a wooden weapon or using your bare fists.

Once you enter the temple, head up the staircase and immediately turn right to find a couple of enemies whom you can knock out or fight. After they are dealt with, you will find the first of four bamboo flowers that you can interact with to collect the soil around them.

From here, return to the temple’s entrance and go east to find some enemies atop a slope guarding the second bamboo flower and a Veiled Edge Banner that you can activate once the area is clear.

Backtrack to the temple’s entrance once again, this time using the stairs towards the south. Proceed west from this point to find the third bamboo flower in front of a shrine guarded by a large enemy.

Proceed towards the east, heading to the back of the main building where you encounter Alexandria Moureau, the mysterious foreign woman from the Fruit From Distant Shores Bond Mission you may have completed for Ine.

SUGGESTED: How To Complete the Fruit From Distant Shores (Bond Mission) in Rise of the Ronin

After the cutscene, proceed through the gate to encounter Motsugai Takeda, the head priest of the temple. He is not happy to see you, assuming that you are common thieves here to pillage the bamboo flowers for your own profit.

The fight with Motsugai can be tricky, considering that he uses his fists and a fighting style that you may not have encountered before. Pay special attention to when he picks up one of the many boulders in this area to hurl in your direction, as well as a couple of his slam attacks that can devastate your Ki if you miss out on a Counterspark.

Defeat Motsugai to trigger a cutscene where Yukichi is able to convince him that the pair of you are only interested in collecting the soil around the flowers. He certainly has a way with words.

The mission ends after this cutscene, significantly improving your bond with Yukichi while also establishing friendly relations with Motsugai in the process.

If you need more help with Rise of the Ronin, our exclusive guides should catch your attention. We have many more on the way so stay tuned!