All Origami Butterfly locations in Assassin's Creed Shadows
How to complete The Butterfly Collector questline in AC Shadows
Trying to track down all 10 Origami Butterflies in Assassin's Creed Shadows? These colourful paper Butterflies are part of a side quest based in Osaka, given to you by a mysterious woman called the Gamemaker. While it may seem like a simple collectibles mini-quest, The Butterfly Collector quickly blossoms into a far more intriguing story that makes it well worth tracking down all 10 Origami Butterfly locations.
In the guide below we've laid out the exact location of all 10 Butterflies in AC Shadows, both in map form and with screenshots pointing you to the exact tree where each Butterfly can be found. We'll also guide you through the remainder of this questline, and the pivotal choice you must make at the very end of the quest.
All 10 Origami Butterfly locations
All 10 Origami Butterflies can be found on trees in the city of Osaka, on the west coast of the starting region, Izumi Settsu. Below is the full list of all the Butterfly locations in Assassin's Creed Shadows, along with a handy interactive map of their exact positions in the city, courtesy of our friends at MapGenie!
Here are all the Origami Butterfly locations:
| No. | Butterfly | Location | Found! |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Purple Origami Butterfly | On a tree at the north tip of Osaka's main island. | |
| 2 | Green Origami Butterfly | On a tree in the backyard of a house in east Osaka. | |
| 3 | Richo's Origami Butterfly | On a tree next to the middle bridge in east Osaka. | |
| 4 | Yellow Origami Butterfly | On a tree in a garden west of the middle bridge. | |
| 5 | Mucho's Origami Butterfly | On a tree overlooking the river west of Osaka. | |
| 6 | Red Origami Butterfly | On a tree on the north side of the Temple of Osaka. | |
| 7 | Shucho's Origami Butterfly | On a tree by the river south of the Kakurega. | |
| 8 | Blue Origami Butterfly | On a tree in a garden west of the Temple of Osaka. | |
| 9 | Pink Origami Butterfly | On a tree in a garden near the southwest bridge leading to Sakai. | |
| 10 | Orange Origami Butterfly | On a tree overlooking the river southeast of the Temple of Osaka. |
To help you track down each individual Butterfly, have a scroll through the sections below, as we point out exactly where to find them on each tree.
1. Purple Origami Butterfly location
The Purple Origami Butterfly can be found just off the northernmost tip of the main island of Osaka, at the edge of a path by the river.
2. Green Origami Butterfly location
The Green Origami Butterfly is found on a tree in the backyard of a house east of the main Osaka island, not far from the wide bridge between the city and the castle.
3. Richo's Origami Butterfly location
This is the first of the "white" Origami Butterflies, each of which contains a note that hints at a wider purpose behind the Butterflies. This one can be found next to the middle of the three bridges separating the main island of Osaka to the land on its east side.
4. Yellow Origami Butterfly location
The Yellow Origami Butterfly is found a very short distance from the previous Butterfly, on a large tree in a garden to the west across the bridge.
5. Mucho's Origami Butterfly location
Mucho's Origami Butterfly is the second of the "white" Butterflies, and also contains a note. This Butterfly is located by the river that separates Osaka from Kojo Ruins to the northwest, roughly between the two bridges.
6. Red Origami Butterfly location
The Red Origami Butterfly can be found inside the densely green area surrounding the central Temple of Osaka, attached to a tree on the north side of the temple grounds.
7. Shucho's Origami Butterfly location
Shucho's Origami Butterfly, the third of the "white" Butterflies containing a note, can be found by the corner of a road next to the river in east Osaka, just south of the city's Kakurega.
8. Blue Origami Butterfly location
The Blue Origami Butterfly is on a tree located in the small garden opposite the Temple Of Osaka on the west side.
9. Pink Origami Butterfly location
The Pink Origami Butterfly is found near the southern tip of Osaka, just north of the bridge that leads south towards Sakai. The tree is in the corner of a path enclosed by fences.
10. Orange Origami Butterfly location
The Orange Origami Butterfly is found southeast of the Temple Of Osaka, right on the northern edge of the river next to a couple of small huts.
Spoiler warning: quest spoilers for The Butterfly Collector below!
The Butterfly Collector walkthrough
By collecting the three white Origami Butterflies with notes attached, Naoe realises that the Butterflies serve a malicious purpose: there's a child kidnapping ring based in Osaka which communicates via these Butterflies. Their aim is to control the trade of sake in the city by killing the children of their competitors and forcing them out of business.
Collecting each of the three suspicious Butterflies out of the 10 will give you a new mini-quest to investigate the kidnappings. Each one will lead you to a kidnapped child, and a member of the "Butterfly Collectors" to assassinate.
Assassinate Richo
After collecting Richo's Butterfly, you'll receive a new mini-quest called "All Will be Well", which requires you to investigate an area in the north of Osaka. As you approach the area, you'll overhear a gardener say "Did you see that woman coming back and forth from the bamboo grove? It's odd." This is your clue to then seek out the bamboo grove north of the city.
The bamboo grove is on the northern edge of Osaka Castle; head to its centre, and you'll find a cabin amid the bamboo. Richo is standing outside the cabin; if she sees you, she'll attack you on sight. Kill her, then open the door to the cabin so you can speak with the kidnapped child.
Escort the girl back through the bamboo grove and to the outskirts of Osaka Castle, where she'll be reunited with her mother. After that, continue onto your next target.
Assassinate Mucho
After collecting Mucho's Butterfly, you'll gain a new quest called "For the Sake of Sake". Head across the west bridge towards Kojo Ruins, and you'll find the child targeted for abduction. Mucho, the kidnapper, is there with the child - but as you approach, she'll start to run.
You can either assassinate Mucho now as she runs, or speak to the child first to make sure he's okay. If you choose the latter, then you can find Mucho not far away in Kojo Ruins, standing outside a wooden house. Kill her, then return to the child.
With Mucho dead, you can escort the child back into the city to find his father. Once the child is returned safely, you can proceed with the next step.
Assassinate Shucho
After collecting Shucho's Butterfly, you'll begin a new quest called "One That Got Away", which tasks you with tracking down one of the child kidnapping victims who managed to escape. Head to the southwest corner of Osaka just before the southern bridge, and you'll find the child next to the location of the Pink Butterfly.
Speak with the child, and she'll tell you where to find Shucho very nearby. The child will run home by herself, so you don't need to escort her. Head to the marked location and you'll find Shucho standing out in the open by a fence, staring into the bushes looking for the child. Sneak up behind her and execute her.
Assassinate Kacho
The leader of the kidnapping ring, Kacho, is next on your list. To find her, you must complete the three previous assassination quests (including escorting the children back home), and then follow the new quests: "Paper Trail", and "Chrysalis". Fear not - both these quests take mere seconds to complete.
The first quest, Paper Trail, involves speaking to a paper merchant at the marked location, who tells you that the woman buying all the paper for the Origami Butterflies is in Nishinomaru Garden.
The second quest, Chrysalis, simply involves heading to the small wooden cabin marked on your map, and reading the note on the floor to confirm Kacho's hideout location.
Kacho can then be found in the outer layer of Osaka Castle, on the west side. You'll know when you've found the right place; the air is filled with butterflies. After a brief cutscene, you can fight and kill Kacho and put an end to the kidnapping ring once and for all. Well, almost. As she dies, Kacho will reveal that the Gamemaker who set you off on this questline is also involved in the kidnapping ring.
Return to the Gamemaker
The final step in the Butterfly Collector questline is to return to the Gamemaker in Katano now that the Butterfly Collectors are all dead. Speak with the Gamemaker, and she'll explain that she was trying to break free from Kacho and her kidnapping ring all her life, and created all the extra coloured Origami Butterflies (and created the game to track them down) precisely so that someone like Naoe could piece things together and put a stop to the kidnappings.
You have three dialogue choices in this conversation: the first allows you to pick between "What you did was wrong", and "Kacho was to blame". This is mere flavour, so it doesn't matter which you choose. The second choice is to give the Gamemaker a new name: O-cho, Ageha, or Monshiro. Again, this has no consequences, so pick whichever you prefer.
The final choice is to kill or spare the Gamemaker. If you choose to kill her, you will need to chase her down and assassinate her as you did the others. If you spare her life, then the quest will simply end with her still alive. Either way, you gain the following quest rewards:
- Butterfly Of Benevolence (Rare Trinket)
- Butterfly Of Benevolence (Rare Amulet)
- Ebisu's Gamble (Bow)
- 1 Mastery Point
- 5,000 XP
That wraps up this guide on tracking down all 10 Origami Butterfly locations and completing the Butterfly Collector questline in Osaka. But we've plenty more to offer on the subject of Assassin's Creed Shadows: why not check out our primers on how to change seasons, how to upgrade weapons and armour, and how to find the fabled Cat Island? You can also check out our guides on the best Naoe skills and best Yasuke skills.