| Weakness | Poison |
|---|---|
| Chapter | Chapter 8 and Chapter 12 |
| Boss level | 45, then 49 |
| Trophy | Kunai & Kirin (Bronze) |
Where you fight it, and at what level
The Chapter 12 rematch at level 49 is the last numbered Nushi you face; only the final boss is listed above it, and that one has no level at all.
| Encounter | Boss level | Skill reward |
|---|---|---|
| Chapter 8 | Level 45 | None |
| Chapter 12 | Level 49 | Blade Art: Thunder, Numasugi: Skewer |
Both encounters count toward the same trophy — you do not get it until the rematch is done.
Chapter 8 is a scripted loss — you are allowed to lose it
The first fight cannot be failed in the way you think. Game8's reward table literally lists the Chapter 8 encounter's reward as "Scripted Loss", and its fight tips say the story progresses whether you win or lose. If you are pushing for story pace, you can simply let this one go.
The Chapter 12 rematch is not optional — that one has to be won like any other boss.
Fextralife adds a detail Game8 doesn't: taking roughly 20–30% of Kunai's health is what triggers the cutscene in the first encounter. That is a single source, so treat it as a rough figure rather than a threshold to plan around.
Kunai's moveset
Kunai is a human Purifier and fights like a duellist. Two of her six moves cannot be parried, and — unusually — she can parry you.
| Attack | What happens | Parry? |
|---|---|---|
| Two Slashes | A simple two-hit string | Yes, both hits |
| Triple Lightning Slash | She jumps and fires three consecutive lightning slashes | Yes — or dodge by moving left and right |
| Greatsword Spin | Her sword becomes a greatsword; two full circular swings into a finishing overhead slash | Yes — but the extended reach means you have to react even at range. Standing back does not make you safe |
| Blight Lunge | She launches up on a pillar of Blight, then dives with a downward strike | No. She is also invulnerable while on the pillar — don't waste the window attacking her |
| Counterattack | She parries your attacks and counters | — |
| Electric Discharge | Sword raised, then slammed down into an electric explosion | No. Dodge backwards the moment the wind-up starts |
Because she can parry, Game8's advice is to open with Koo's skills to land a status ailment first, then attack while she cannot move — rather than trading melee strings with someone who punishes them.
Kirin Malefact's moveset
Kirin is the beast half and is mostly water- and ground-based. Most of its kit is parryable, which makes it the safer of the two to pressure.
| Attack | What happens | Parry? |
|---|---|---|
| Missile Launch | Flashes a red light, then fires missiles | The missiles only travel a short distance — back away rather than trying to parry |
| Water Beam | Stands still and fires a straight-line beam | Yes — or sidestep |
| Water Spin | Starts like the Water Beam, then spins in a circle | Yes, twice. This is an open window for Koo |
| Mud Pounce | Lays mud that slows Emma, then pounces, sprouting roots on landing | Don't stand in the mud. The recovery after the pounce is the best punish window in the fight |
| Rush | Grows horns at its sides, then charges horn-first | Yes — or sidestep as it starts forward |
| Triple Rush | Three consecutive rushes with a slight pause between each | Yes — the pauses are generous |
| Rooted Counterattack | Sprouts roots that counter your melee attacks | Hit it, then dodge immediately |
How to beat them
- Fight one at a time. They never telegraph attacks simultaneously, so splitting damage between them just makes the fight longer. Pick one and commit.
- Build Koo's Florescence Points on Kunai. Her attacks have clean tells, which makes her the reliable parry target. When the game switches focus to Kirin, stop parrying and start dodging its wide-range attacks instead.
- Punish Kirin after the Mud Pounce. That landing recovery is the single clearest damage window either boss gives you.
- Respect both counterattacks. Kunai parries and counters; Kirin's roots counter melee. Neither of them is safe to mash on.
- Keep ranged options up. Kirin's beam and missiles push you out, so you need something that works from where it puts you.
What to bring
Build for Poison — it is the listed weakness for both halves of the fight.
- Hunter's Sword (Poison, Envenomed: Poison buildup +8). Fextralife names this weapon for both paired Nushi fights.
- Poison Arrows and Poison Bolts, stocked up. You will need range against Kirin whether you want it or not.
- Higanbana: Roots on Koo, to Bind Kunai when she starts parrying everything.
- For the Chapter 12 rematch specifically, Black Blossom (Poison + Lightning, Poison Storm, buildup +20) is the strongest Poison option if you already cleared the final Shidou & Nue fight, which is where it drops.
At level 45 and 49 these are late fights. If you are arriving under-levelled, Amber farming and a respec are the two fastest corrections. The Koo command list and the combat page cover the mechanics.
Rewards
| Encounter | Boss level | Reward |
|---|---|---|
| Chapter 8 — Crater Zone | 45 | Scripted loss — no reward |
| Chapter 12 — The Capital | 49 | Blade Art: Thunder · Numasugi: Skewer |
Fextralife adds that Kunai's own weapon, Camellia, can be collected from the Cleanse Walker after the Chapter 12 fight. Note that our weapons table lists Camellia as a Lightning blade, not Poison — one third-party guide describes it as a Poison weapon, which appears to be a mix-up with Black Blossom. We are going with Lightning.
Both encounters count toward the same trophy — you do not get Kunai & Kirin (Bronze) until the rematch is done.
What we haven't verified
Correction, August 13: this page previously said "we do not have a move-by-move breakdown for this fight, and we are not going to invent one." That is now out of date — Game8 published full attack tables for both bosses, which we read directly rather than through a search snippet. The tables above are theirs.
Still open: no resistance percentages exist for any boss in this game, from any source, so Poison is a qualitative weakness. No recommended player level is published anywhere — 45 and 49 are the boss levels, not advice. Arena hazards beyond Kirin's mud are undocumented. And Fextralife's 20–30% cutscene trigger is a single source.
Related guides
- All bosses: weakness, chapter and level
- Nue Malefact & Shidou — the other paired Nushi fight, also weak to Poison
- Every sword, element and drop location
- Combat system — parry, dodge and stagger
- Every achievement by name
Sources
- Game8 — "How to Beat Kunai and Kirin" (both attack tables, parry verdicts, the "1st Fight is a Scripted Loss" section, the four fight tips and the reward table; page last updated August 11, 2026; read directly in-browser on August 13, 2026, not via a search summary)
- Game8 — "List of All Bosses" (weakness, chapter and boss level cross-check; read August 10, 2026, re-checked August 13, 2026)
- Fextralife — Kunai and Kirin (Crater Zone and The Capital locations, Hunter's Sword and Higanbana: Roots loadout, the 20–30% cutscene trigger, Camellia from the Cleanse Walker; checked August 13, 2026)
- OSLink — boss location guide (encounter locations; checked August 13, 2026)
- PowerPyx trophy guide (the Kunai & Kirin trophy and its tier, confirming this is a required story fight; checked August 10, 2026)
We do not own the game and do not run first-hand benchmarks or playtests. Every figure on this page is attributed to a named third-party source, and anything we could not verify is marked as unverified rather than filled in.