"I just have to take the naginata, the bow, and... the katana that brat in the back is holding, right?"
"Yes. I am sure you already know, but—"
"You mean don't forget to capture the half-dragon? I only skipped it because it goes without saying."
Zaraki advanced toward Setsuna and the others, his knuckles popping with every flex of his fists.
Her instincts screamed at the sight of the man’s approach. Raiha turned and shouted to Yui, who was cowering behind her.
"Yui-san, get back! Stay away from us!"
"Smart move. If you stay too close, you might get caught in the crossfire and end up dead," Zaraki said with a smirk.
Unlike the desperate Raiha and her companions, Zaraki appeared entirely composed. He stopped at a distance that was neither too close nor too far, staring intently at Raiha once more before speaking.
"Don't look at me like that. Didn't I tell you? We’re two of a kind. We should be getting along...!"
"I... refuse!"
"Don't you dare lump Raiha in with a Great Sinner like yourself! She is nothing like you!" Setsuna shouted.
"Hahahaha! How kind of you...! Well, I suppose you're right. It’s true that you and I are birds of a feather, but we aren't exactly the same kind. You’re on a much lower level than I am."
Zaraki let out a throaty laugh, the corners of his mouth curling as he mocked Raiha. After declaring that Setsuna and Sakura were mere humans, and that Raiha was a half-dragon and therefore inferior, he continued.
"You've been desperately suppressing that dragon power ever since you went on a rampage five years ago, haven't you? What a waste. You became a half-dragon and then refused to use the gift you were given... You’re a pathetic fool."
"Shut up! You have no right to mock her—not after you used your power to slaughter so many innocent people!"
"Hey now, what are you talking about? You girls are using the power you gained to your heart’s content, too."
Zaraki spoke with an exasperated expression, as if mocking Setsuna from the bottom of his soul. Staring at them with sharp, predatory eyes, he stated matter-of-factly.
"The only reason you could use the Dragon's Eye to cure a disease, and the only reason you’ve managed to keep it a secret this long, is because you girls are high-born brats. Am I wrong? Of course I'm not."
"That’s...!"
"There is a difference between violence and authority, but you lot aren't any different from me! ...Actually, you're even worse. After all, you’re putting that girl in danger again right now—the daughter of the very swordsman you murdered five years ago!"
"What...? Murdered... five years ago...?"
Yui, who was already reeling from the shock of learning Raiha was a half-dragon, was devastated by Zaraki's words. As the girl stood aghast at the identity of her father's killer, Raiha turned toward her, her voice strained as she forced out an apology.
"...I'm so sorry, Yui-san. I should have... told you much sooner..."
"Then, Raiha-san, did you really...?"
"Hahahaha! Don't tell me you're actually feeling guilty? You stopped being human ages ago, yet you’re still losing sleep over killing a mere mortal? Is that it!?"
Zaraki laughed loudly at Raiha, spitting out his words as he watched her agony. Spreading his arms wide, he overflowed with Fighting Spirit. As his madness finally boiled over, he let out a roar.
"You're a real idiot! If you cast aside your humanity, those tiny worries will vanish! We’ve become beings that transcend humans! Beings who can do as they please with human lives!"
"No! I am... I am... ugh!?"
His rapidly expanding magic power surged with the violence of a physical explosion. The others were forced to shield their faces from the impact. When they finally looked up, they saw Zaraki’s transformed figure standing at the center of the crater.
"You're a real fool...! If you'd just accepted that you were no longer human, you could have obtained such wonderful power...!"
He was now violence incarnate.
Massive horns and jagged claws erupted from his frame. Solid gray scales coated his entire body, and his eyes had bled into a void of pure black. Zaraki was already a large man, but with this inhuman strength—the power of a mighty dragon—his form exuded a pressure capable of crushing anything in its path.
Enveloped in a raging storm of magic, Zaraki flaunted his superhuman form to the group.
"This is the Dragon-man Form... It is a power that transcends both half-dragons and Magic Armor Beasts alike. You lot are lucky; after all... you'll get to experience its terrifying majesty firsthand!"