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Most of Sekiro’s bosses and boss-like encounters are optional if your only goal is to see one ending. The exception that matters most is the route split at Ashina Castle, where your choice decides which bosses exist for you at all. Siding with Owl starts the shorter Shura ending, while siding with Kuro keeps the story going toward the other three endings.
“Optional” can mean three different things in Sekiro, and mixing them up is the main reason players think they have missed something. A boss can be skippable because it is not needed for any ending, because it is needed only for one specific ending, or because it is a side encounter that offers rewards but gates nothing. The sections below separate those cases.
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The three meanings of “optional”
- Not required for any ending: you can finish the game, reach an ending, and never fight it. Lady Butterfly and most hidden minibosses fall here.
- Required only for a specific ending: you must fight it for one ending path, but not for the rest. Owl (Father) is the clearest example.
- Optional with a timing window: the fight is skippable, but once the story moves past a certain point, access to it can close. This is what makes some side content easy to miss.
The route decision at Ashina Castle
Everything else depends on this choice. According to the publisher-hosted Steam news post “How to get the four Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice endings”, dated March 28, 2019, the decision comes after you have obtained the Lotus of the Palace and the Shelter Stone. The post states: “If you choose to obey Owl, two boss fights will be unlocked and you’ll receive the Shura ending.”
Obeying Owl ends the story early and leads to New Game Plus. The Shura route excludes later areas and later bosses, so a Shura-only playthrough never reaches the fights described below for the non-Shura path. Choosing Kuro continues the longer story, which includes the Divine Dragon and Isshin, the Sword Saint, and leads to three non-Shura endings: Immortal Severance, Return, and Purification.
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Principal bosses by route
Shura: two exclusive fights
The Shura ending has two boss fights that exist only on that route. You will not face them on the Kuro path. If you want the Shura ending specifically, these are required; if you want any other ending, you can ignore them entirely.
Demon of Hatred
Demon of Hatred is a late encounter on the non-Shura endgame path, appearing after the Divine Dragon. It is not required to complete the non-Shura endings. The all-boss guide on PowerPyx gives its location in the Ashina Outskirts and its progression timing. Because it sits late in the route, you can only reach it after you have committed to the Kuro path.
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Owl (Father)
Owl (Father) is an altered-memory encounter set in the Hirata Estate. It is not needed for Immortal Severance or Return, but it is required for Purification. Getting to it is a multi-step chain:
- Pursue Emma’s investigation.
- Receive the Father’s Bell Charm.
- Revisit the Hirata Estate.
- Defeat Owl (Father) before you defeat the Divine Dragon.
The last step is the one players most often miss. If the Divine Dragon falls first, the Purification path is closed for that playthrough.
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Lady Butterfly appears within the Hirata Estate memory but is not a mandatory story boss. A player who skips that memory can finish the story without fighting her. The boss guide lists her separately from the main route.
Optional minibosses and apparition encounters
Guides often group these under “minibosses,” but players asking which bosses they can skip usually mean them too. None of the encounters below is needed to reach an ending, though several offer Prayer Beads, materials, or other rewards.
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| Encounter | Where it appears | Needed for an ending? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headless | Several hidden spots around the world | No | The guide notes Terror damage and recommends Divine Confetti and Pacifying Agent for the encounter. |
| Shichimen Warrior (Abandoned Dungeon) | Bottomless Hole in the Abandoned Dungeon | No | An optional apparition encounter, documented in the PowerPyx encounter list. |
| Shichimen Warrior (Ashina Depths) | Appears after the Guardian Ape duo | No | Optional side content; timing follows the Guardian Ape fight. |
| Generals and Lone Shadows | Various areas | No | Rewards include Prayer Beads and materials. Some disappear or change as the story advances. |
Where you can lose access
Skipping an optional fight is safe. Missing one because you advanced the story is not always recoverable on the same save. Three traps are worth knowing:
- Purification before the Divine Dragon. The Purification quest and its altered Hirata memory must be completed before the Divine Dragon is defeated.
- Ashina Castle changes. Story progress alters certain Ashina Castle encounters, so an area you cleared early may look different later.
- Shura removes later content. Choosing Owl ends the run at the Shura ending, so anything after that point is not available on that playthrough.
If you want to see more encounters on a first playthrough, explore thoroughly before major story transitions. If you miss one, New Game Plus can take you down a different ending route, which is the practical way to revisit a missed branch.
How firm these claims are
The Steam news post is the strongest source for the ending choice and route structure. The PowerPyx all-boss guide and encounter list supply locations and progression timing. The Purification walkthrough is community-maintained, so treat its quest steps as corroborating detail rather than an official checklist. None of these sources is a formal publisher list that labels every encounter “optional.” The classifications above are inferred from whether an encounter is needed to reach a named ending. The Steam post is dated March 28, 2019, so confirm specific locations and triggers against the version of the game you are playing.
Quick Recap
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