Eastern fighters raised spirit in disordered parts of Asia (7)

I believe the answer is:

samurai

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'eastern fighters' is the definition.
'samurai' can be an answer for 'fighters' (swordsmen in feudal Japan). I am not certain of the 'eastern' bit.

I cannot understand how the rest of the clue works.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for samurai that I've seen before include "Caste of Japanese warriors" , "military man" , "Japanese military retainer" , "Historical Japanese warrior" , "Jap. warrior caste" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.

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