Along the way, listening to Furina and Uchiha Hikari chattering about his earlier performance, Kakashi finally couldn't hold back and started defending himself.
Unfortunately, Furina remained in "not listening, not listening" mode toward her explanation, and Uchiha Hikari was even worse—her attention was entirely on Furina the whole time, not sparing him a single glance.
"Sigh."
While Kakashi was lamenting the decline of morals, the group finally arrived at the destination of this trip—the Land of Swamps, where Mōryō's body was sealed.
Compared to the earlier Land of Demons, the Land of Swamps appeared far more desolate, with no sign of life at all, as if everything here had already stepped toward death.
"It seems we came to the right place this time. If we let this go unchecked, more places will surely end up in the same state as here in the future."
Seeing the tragic condition of the Land of Swamps, Furina's expression grew much more serious, no longer joking around with Kakashi like before.
"That's right. Everyone, get ready for battle. The final enemy, Mōryō, should be nearby."
Seeing the change in Furina, Kakashi chimed in accordingly. He knew very well that for someone whose dream was to make this world better, the current situation was absolutely unacceptable.
It could be foreseen that the demon called Mōryō was going to suffer badly next, because this time the opponent wasn't fighting alone. He believed he could definitely help this time.
Thanks to the new power he had recently obtained.
Feeling the Sharingan slowly spinning under his headband, Kakashi's heart filled with confidence. During the time Furina was away, he hadn't slacked off at all.
The daily relentless training even made him feel like he was back in his youth. His suddenly surging vitality surprised his good friend Guy as well, who then increased his own daily training volume in response.
In short, one word: grind. And in turn, Guy's further performance made Kakashi subconsciously increase his own training volume. The two of them spent every day in mutual internal competition.
Although such days were hard for Kakashi, who had grown accustomed to slacking, to adapt to at first, no matter what, he was once a super genius. He could still persist at this level.
After all, his three students—one had gone off with Jiraiya to train after retrieving her teammate, one sought revenge and power by approaching Orochimaru, and the other was even more impressive, wanting to change this cruel ninja world.
With his three disciples like this, how could he as their teacher possibly relax? Fortunately, his hard training during this period had indeed produced great results.
The new ability gave him the confidence to face any enemy head-on.
"No, Kakashi-sensei, the battle actually started the moment we stepped into the Land of Swamps."
Kakashi naturally trusted Furina immensely, so upon hearing her correction, he immediately looked around vigilantly. And under his alertness, something unusual really did happen.
"Mōryō's immortal army, huh? Makes sense. Since he knows the purpose of our trip, gathering forces here is normal."
Looking at the terracotta warriors slowly closing in on them from all directions, Kakashi understood what Furina meant.
The only explanation for these terracotta warriors appearing so quickly was that Mōryō had prepared an ambush here long ago. Otherwise, they couldn't possibly have failed to sense it.
But even though they were surrounded, Kakashi showed no panic at all. After all, these terracotta warriors were made of stone. The only troublesome aspect was their immortality; everything else posed no real threat.
On their side, his and Guy's strength went without saying—his new ability and the Eight Gates were both far beyond ordinary powerful means.
In addition, there was Shion, rumored to possess the priestess power that counters Mōryō, as well as his increasingly unfathomable disciple Furina. And that friend of hers named Hikari seemed far from ordinary as well.
"Haha, looks like the battle really has started. Alright, everyone ready?"
Guy naturally also noticed the numerous terracotta warriors closing in around them. Rubbing his hands together, he was clearly prepared to act, but before he could charge, Kakashi stopped him with a look.
After stopping Guy, Kakashi turned his head toward Furina. The visible eye showed clear amusement, as if saying "this is up to you."
"Hey, hey, Kakashi-sensei, you're really good at bossing people around."
Though she complained verbally, Furina had no intention of refusing. Right now, dealing with such a large group of enemies was indeed most suitable for her.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique"
Because the terracotta warriors moved slowly, Furina had plenty of time to prepare. After completing the full set of hand seals, endless water currents poured out from around her, rushing simultaneously toward the terracotta warriors approaching from all directions.