Ashina Dungeons | Sekiro Shadows Die Twice Wiki

The game would have you think that this note was placed as a trap - to lure you in to only be reigned down upon by crickets.

But, why would a note be worthy bait? I think there's something specific about this note, location, and whomever it is that resides in the cell alongside it.

Kotaro is the gentle giant we meet in Senpou who is wracked with grief that all his friends are gone; it seems clear that at least one of them ended up in Ashina's Dungeons.

The Okami warriors once warred in Ashina, and presumably traveled to Fountainhead Palace the same way Sekiro does; offering aromatic items at the wedding cave. The old tome this prisoner had seems intentionally cryptic in attempt to conceal the only known entry to Fountainhead Palace, where the Okami now reside.

Unlike many of the other "things" to see in Ashina Dungeons, this individual has a story. They have their own room, and they seem to have at one point been able to record what it was they were doing. 

According to the note they were hunting the fragrant stone but only made it to as far as the bottomless hole before encountering some difficulties. 

It seems they were tied up against this post, as this is where you find their note as above, but what could have caused those injuries? The ropes look like they could, but only if they were burned into the skin and ripped out. 

Maybe they were tied up for so long the ropes themselves rotted away leaving a mark on the flesh?

Another of Ashina's rejected. Perhaps the wounds are the result of simply gouging the flesh out to be used as red lumps? 

Most areas in the dungeon seem to have what appears to be markings resulting from the prisoners scratching the stone. 

The rotting prisoners note is describing the Shelter Stone. It is one of the items required to gain access to The Fountainhead Palace.

Note that is villagers of Mibu are known as "water-dwellers" and that shelter stones can appear inside someone's body. This is probably related to the sedimentation of the rejuvenating waters.

This note also points to Mibu village and the previous attempts made to reach the divine realm.

The rotting prisoner's note references an "old okami" that lead them to the gateway at The Bottomless Hole but he turned back as was unable to deduce what "throw yourself" meant.

These are the Okami. Ōkami (狼) is a Japanese word that means "wolf".

So, the wolf clan set out to find the divine realm and as we enter The Fountainhead Palance we find out that they succeeded. 

However, interestly enough the Okami are weak to Sabimaru and the poisonous rust that falls from it as you use it.

Dojun, The Master's Apprentice.

In the end the dungeon's only brought to life the madness whispered from the rejuvenating waters. Dosaku seems to have never been alive and Dojun had convinced himself that he was still working under his Master.

Perhaps it is even Dosaku that is the writhing corpse kept in the first room where the note was found.

This is Dojun - he is one of the people that are responsible for what we see in Ashina's Dungeons.

He works under Master Dosaku the individual that is giving the orders and carrying about the research into medicine using The Rejuvenating Waters.

 Carrying the weight of his Master's work after being abandoned by his other students, Dosaku's demands to continue the experimentation drove Dojun mad.

Until the very end he served his Master. 

Dojun when speaking to Dosaku during an eavesdropping moment accusing Dosku of being seduced by the rejuvenating waters and reveals that Dosaku intended to use his last student as a test subject.

Dosaku, The Butcher of Ashina's Dungeons.

Inside Dosaku's cell there is a wall with has water running down it. It stands out as there is no other wall like this.

Are these the rejuvenating waters that Dosaku drank and become lost under their influence?

 The Fate of The Prisoners. 

The ultimate fate for these prisoners seems to be beheading, as you can see similar hair-style to the others located here poking out from just under the cloth.

There are quite a number of these heads placed around the dungeon so perhaps they are kept for harvesting? Red lumps seem to be flesh that has been harvested from organisms that have themselves been treated with Rejuvenating Waters. 

The hairstyles seen seem to suggest that these test subjects came from Mibu Village.

What Lies Beneath.

The Rotting Prisoner's note mentioned a village below in which The Fragrant Stone is enshrined. 

The arch underneath which The Faithful woman sits would seem to be the right place to go; but do you really have to throw yourself off to get there?

It seems unlikely that pilgrims or travellers would always simply throw themselves off a cliff and hope for Goku's nimbus to catch them.

As there is a broken bridge at the top and a partial cave in at the bottom I would think that at some point the people at either end decided they no longer wised for anymore visitors.

Being cut off from the world has meant this place has stagnated and begun to rot. Long before any monk turned from their path this place was home to the toxic haze that lurks everywhere.

The people Sekiro finds here would not be out of place in Ashina's Dungeons except they seem mostly sane and capable of doing more than shambling towards you.

However, they are draped in bandages and are covered in wounds, disease, and filth. 

Where The Waters Pool Deep Only Death Walks.