Even the slightest friction could spark a conflict.
At that thought, Douyang ran up beside Kakashi and voiced his concerns.
Kakashi pondered for a moment, then nodded. "The mission comes first. Avoid conflict with ninja from other villages as much as possible. But if it really comes to that..."
A sharp gleam flashed through Kakashi's eyes as he continued, "We in Konoha won't let anyone push us around."
Kakashi might have looked listless all day, as though he had worked himself to exhaustion.
But one mustn't forget that he had become a jonin at twelve and killed countless people on the battlefield. He had no misplaced mercy.
The four of them traveled swiftly, reaching the northwestern border of the Land of Fire in less than a day.
They were in a lush, densely wooded forest.
The squad chewed on Military Rations Pills while planning their route.
The Land of Demons lay a thousand miles from the Land of Fire, with several small countries between them, including the Land of Rain, the Land of Grass, and the Land of Birds.
Law and order in the small countries was poor, with mountain bandits, wandering ninja, and even rogue ninja all gathered there.
Though none of them feared a fierce battle, it would be disastrous if delays along the way kept them from reaching the Land of Demons in time.
The squad now had two options.
First, cross the Land of Rain and pass through the Land of Birds to reach the Land of Demons.
Second, cross the Land of Grass and pass through the Land of Bears to reach the Land of Demons.
Douyang said, "Kakashi, it rains year-round in the Land of Rain. Crossing it would waste time unnecessarily, so we'd be better off going through the Land of Grass."
A trace of inner struggle showed in Kakashi's dead-fish eyes.
Whenever he heard mention of the Land of Grass, he thought of Obito.
Obito had died heroically in the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. His body had been buried beneath the broken bridge, and its whereabouts remained unknown to this day.
If possible, he never wanted to pass through Kannabi Bridge again.
Douyang knew Kakashi was upset.
Obito's "tragic death" was a wound Kakashi would always carry.
It was also part of the reason he had joined the Anbu and numbed himself with endless missions.
Six years had now passed since the end of the Third Shinobi World War.
That was more than enough time for Nagato to create the Six Paths of Pain.
Douyang remembered that the first thing Nagato had done after creating the Six Paths of Pain was kill Hanzō to avenge Yahiko.
At this point in time, the entire Land of Rain might well have already fallen completely under the Akatsuki's control.
In other words, the Land of Rain was a death trap. Getting in would be easy, but getting out would be difficult.
For the squad's safety, they must not go through the Land of Rain under any circumstances.
After pondering for a moment, Douyang continued, "That man in the Land of Rain known as the 'Demigod' isn't exactly on friendly terms with Konoha."
At the mention of Hanzō, Kakashi's eyes narrowed slightly. "All right. We'll follow Douyang's suggestion and go through the Land of Grass. We leave after a half-hour rest."
Beside them, Shisui and Guy nodded in agreement as they chewed their rice balls.
Seeing this, Douyang breathed a sigh of relief.
Clearly, Kakashi, Shisui, and Guy all wanted to avoid provoking Hanzō.
Though Hanzō's fearsome reputation was greatly exaggerated, it was still quite intimidating to those below Kage Level.
After resting for half an hour, the squad headed northwest, passing through the Land of Grass with a few scares but no mishaps before entering the Land of Bears...
Kakashi had thought they would be able to meet up with the priestess once they reached the Land of Demons.
Instead, the squad had barely set foot in the Land of Demons when a troop of terracotta soldiers attacked them.
Rumble!!!
Amid successive rumbles, thick clouds of dust spread in all directions,
Shisui used the Body Flicker Technique to appear among the squad and frowned. "They won't die. What the hell are these terracotta soldiers?"
Terracotta soldiers should have been lifeless objects, but these seemed to possess intelligence, yet also seemed to be directed by some invisible force...
Upon spotting the squad, they immediately formed ranks and launched a ferocious attack.
Shisui shattered one terracotta soldier with his Ninja Blade, while Might Guy took down two beside him. Yet a moment later, the destroyed soldiers returned to their original state, as though they were immortal.
Chirp, chirp!!
A piercing screech rang out, like hundreds upon thousands of birds calling.
Holding lightning in his palm, Kakashi shattered a terracotta soldier's head.
But with a swirl of stone fragments, its head instantly reformed.
Kakashi frowned deeply. "Ninjutsu doesn't work either. This is troublesome."
These terracotta soldiers were the Ghost Army controlled by Moryo.
Whenever Moryo revived, they would emerge from underground to protect him.
Though the terracotta soldiers were impervious to blades and spears, they were ultimately mere puppets, and their movements were clumsy.
There was no need to fight them head-on.
So Douyang suggested, "Kakashi, let's not waste time. We'd be better off finding the priestess first and getting a clear picture of the situation."
Kakashi considered it for a moment and accepted Douyang's suggestion.
Their mission was to assist the priestess Miroku in sealing Moryo. Wasting time here was hardly wise.
As long as they found Miroku, everything would get better.
The squad stopped engaging the enemy, swiftly shook off the clumsy terracotta soldiers, and raced toward the heart of the Land of Demons.
The deeper they went into the Land of Demons, the more terracotta soldiers they encountered along the way.
Villages and towns had been mercilessly destroyed by the terracotta soldiers, with heavy civilian casualties. Devastation filled their vision...
Even the four squad members, all of whom had seen battle, couldn't help feeling their scalps prickle.
Every minute of delay meant countless innocent lives lost.
Realizing how critical the situation was, the four accelerated toward the temple.
After a day of running at full speed, the towering Priestess Temple came into view.
The squad stood on high ground, gazing toward the Priestess Temple.
A large force of terracotta soldiers had already surrounded the Priestess Temple, but fortunately, a hazy defensive barrier enveloped its surroundings, keeping the soldiers from breaking in.
At the sight, Douyang breathed a sigh of relief.
The temple had not yet fallen.
They were not too late.
Shisui narrowed his eyes. "Kakashi, there are terracotta soldiers everywhere. Fighting our way in to meet up with the priestess will be tricky."
Unable to breach the temple's defensive barrier, the terracotta soldiers had massed outside in great numbers, more than two hundred in all.
Though these terracotta soldiers moved slowly, they possessed boundless strength and immortal bodies. Any ninja caught in their battle formation would be worn down until they died.
Charging in recklessly was hardly wise.
Douyang was studying the best route into the temple when he suddenly looked up toward another stretch of high ground. "Ninja from another village. Cloud Ninja?"
Just then, Shisui pointed toward a cliff to the west and called out, "Look over there! Mist Ninja?"
Kakashi first followed Douyang's gaze and spotted several figures standing on the high ground. Judging by the Forehead Protectors on their brows, they were indeed Cloud Ninja.
On a cliff to the west, four Mist Ninja were also crouching or standing.
Kakashi considered for a moment, then said, "Douyang's assessment was right. The priestess sent requests for aid to ninja from all Five Great Nations at the same time. We share the same objective as the Cloud Ninja and Mist Ninja. We'll cooperate with them and fight our way into the temple together."
As things stood, circumstances forced their hand.
Any one squad would have difficulty entering the Priestess Temple on its own.
Kakashi intended to join forces.
The Cloud Ninja and Mist Ninja had the same idea.
Before long, the three squads successfully gathered atop a high cliff.
Before you continue