Max health in Ninja Gaiden 4 doesn’t come from a shop or a skill tree. It comes from pairing two collectible items. Any time you hold one Black Scale and one Phantasmal Herb, the game automatically crafts a Dragon Lord’s Grace. Yakumo consumes it immediately, permanently extending his health bar.

How Dragon Lord’s Grace works

  • Pick up one Black Scale and one Phantasmal Herb in any order.
  • The game auto-combines them into Dragon Lord’s Grace; there’s no manual crafting step.
  • Yakumo uses it on pickup; the health bar grows by a small, permanent chunk.
  • You can extend Yakumo’s max health ten times total, which means finding ten Scales and ten Herbs across the campaign.

Most of these items sit in chests or come as side mission rewards. You’ll miss upgrades if you ignore side content.

Use DarkNest Terminals for missions and turn-ins

Many Scales and Herbs are mission rewards. Accept optional missions at the first DarkNest Terminal in a chapter and check subsequent terminals as you progress. After meeting an objective, turn the mission in at any Terminal to receive the reward item; you don’t get it automatically on completion in the field.

Black Scale locations (confirmed)

Chapter Where to look How to secure it
02 — Haunted District Small alley on the left before the first rail/Caddis Wire anchor Open the item chest in the alley
03 — Phantom Pleasure Quarter Shrine segment near the “Food Thief” area Complete the “Rotting Charm” side mission (chest behind a blue cargo container)
04 — Pilgrim’s Windswept Path Fuuhaku Sanctum Complete the “Secret Supplies” side mission (item chest on the arena after the first wind current)
08 — Drowned District Drowned District overworld Complete the “Antiquated Currency” side mission
12 — Dragon’s Maw Large opening arena of the chapter After the first fight, find the item chest to the right of the door leading into the long corridor
12 — Dragon’s Maw Area where warning lights turn red near the inner gate Open the chest with the classified document, then turn in “Classified Document” at a DarkNest Terminal

Phantasmal Herb locations (confirmed)

Chapter Where to look How to secure it
01 — Bloodsoaked Tokyo Large outdoor industrial arena with three chests in a row Pick up the Data Chip for the “Find the data chip in Sky City Tokyo” mission, then turn it in at a Terminal
03 — Phantom Pleasure Quarter Circular chamber in the shrine Open the chest in the slender alcove at the top of the stairs
05 — Raging Valley Fuuhaku Sanctum cliffside near a fireball-spitting heavy enemy late in the climb Grab the Heirloom Knife for the “Retrieve the heirloom knife” mission, then turn it in
06 — Guiding Winds Landing bridge near the first DarkNest Terminal Open the chest to the left of the Terminal, at the edge of the broken suspension bridge
09 — Realm of Silent Dead Drowned District Collect all three “Beautiful Minerals” (marked by pillars of light), then claim the mission reward
11 — Infiltration After the first rail set piece and a gate slide Jump to the side platform off the rail, defeat enemies, and open the item chests
19 — Ebon Wings Platform with a DarkNest Terminal reached by a wind current Go up the stairs; open the chest to the left of the vertical chute to the final battle
Note: Additional Herbs also tie to midgame Fuuhaku Sanctum missions (for example, the Tengu Offering). If you’re following the mission board each chapter and turning in promptly, you’ll stay on pace for the full set.

Ryu Hayabusa uses Lives of the Thousand Gods

From Chapter 15, control shifts to Ryu for a stretch. During these chapters, permanent health boosts drop as Lives of the Thousand Gods rather than Dragon Lord’s Grace. The first appears in Chapter 15: after entering through the back door and dropping into the large tunnel, turn around to find a chest against the wall.

Purgatory Gates don’t change permanent max health

Purgatory Gates let you trade away a portion of your current max health temporarily for better rewards during a wave challenge. That reduction applies to the gate challenge only; it does not erase Dragon Lord’s Grace upgrades or your long-term health progression.

The reliable path to a larger health bar is simple: keep picking up every Black Scale and Phantasmal Herb you can, accept side missions early, and turn them in at DarkNest Terminals as soon as objectives are complete. Do that consistently and Yakumo will hit the ten‑upgrade cap well before the hardest late‑game fights.