"Hahahaha! Venting, are we? You certainly talk a big game, don't you?"
Zaraki laughed gleefully at Ryuga’s provocative words.
Observing his relaxed demeanor—an attitude that showed he didn't harbor a shred of doubt regarding his own superiority—Koumaru clicked his tongue softly before offering a warning.
"Don't be careless. His skill far exceeds your imagination. And when you factor in the Dragon Power within that Ryuo-ga—"
"I told you to shut up. An interesting opponent has finally shown up. Let me enjoy this!"
Zaraki cut off Koumaru’s advice, unwilling to let his fun be spoiled. Wearing a malevolent grin, he charged toward Ryuga.
He swung a massive arm tipped with glowing, razor-sharp claws. Even when his crushing blows were skillfully parried, Zaraki’s delighted expression never wavered as he pressed the attack.
"I’ve been wanting to fight you! Since you finished off that Kurotobari fellow so easily, it looks like I can finally unleash the full might of my Dragon-man Form!"
A straight punch aimed at the chest was met head-on and blocked by the katana.
A lariat swung with enough force to decapitate a man was avoided with a nimble leap backward.
Zaraki lunged again, timing his strike for the exact moment Ryuga’s feet left the ground during a backstep. He unleashed a flurry intended to disembowel his opponent from stomach to chest, yet even that was parried away.
However, it wasn't just a simple parry. Zaraki felt a sharp sensation across his arm. When he looked down, he saw a clean cut opening between his scales.
"Heh... Did you actually aim for that? Or was it just luck?"
"Don't ask me questions."
Zaraki’s body was encased in reinforced Dragon Scales, but he was far from invincible.
His weaknesses were two-fold: weapons that shared the same Dragon Power, and the minute gaps between his scales where his defenses didn't reach.
The former was manageable, but the latter required god-like precision to exploit. Yet, Ryuga had just done exactly that.
Still, Zaraki maintained his composure. He watched his wounded arm knit back together instantaneously and gave a mocking sneer.
"Don't underestimate the Dragon Power. A scratch like that heals in a heartbeat."
"So it means I can carve up a giant lizard to my heart's content. Good to know. That helps."
Zaraki’s mood brightened further at Ryuga’s retort. He thrived on provocation. He began to imagine the look on Ryuga’s face when that unyielding spirit was finally snapped by overwhelming power. Anticipation fueling him, he launched an even more savage assault.
"Come on! Let’s keep going! Show me just how much you can take!"
Leveraging a robust physique brimming with Dragon Power, Zaraki unleashed a relentless onslaught. He wielded his own flesh—arms, legs, fists, and claws—as weapons far more devastating than any common Magic Item. He took perverse pleasure in trying to shatter Ryuga’s guard.
I know his game, Zaraki thought. He thinks he can stack up damage by hitting the gaps between my scales. But it’s useless!
As established in the previous fight, his sturdy armor of Dragon Scales was impenetrable to normal attacks. An opponent had no choice but to target the narrow vulnerabilities in the joints, but consistently hitting those microscopic openings on a moving target like Zaraki was a superhuman feat.
Ryuga had been performing that miracle repeatedly, yet the Dragon's Recovery Power closed the wounds as fast as they appeared.
In other words, no matter how much Ryuga chipped away at him, he couldn't deal any lasting damage. Eventually, the mental fatigue of maintaining such absolute focus while dodging lethal blows would break him.
Zaraki didn't care if Ryuga’s concentration snapped first or if his guard simply crumbled under the pressure. Either way, his victory was inevitable. Convinced of this, he pressed his advantage without mercy.
"What’s the matter!? Can't keep up? Hah!?"
Zaraki roared, flaunting his overwhelming strength. Ryuga was stuck in a loop of defending and evading, seemingly losing even the brief windows he’d had to counterattack. This only served to heighten Zaraki’s ecstasy.
He had consumed Dragon Flesh, mastered its power, and slaughtered his way to this peak. No one could reach him here.
Bathed in a sense of total supremacy, Zaraki wound up for a finishing blow, swinging his arm in a massive arc toward Ryuga’s face. He saw the strike slip past Ryuga’s guard and smiled, certain the battle was over—
"Wait... what?"
Suddenly, he felt a strange series of disconnects. He scowled in confusion.
He had swung with everything he had, yet the impact he expected against Ryuga’s skull never came. His body, which should have been at its peak, felt strangely light. Especially his right arm—it felt weightless.
Still processing the anomaly, Zaraki looked down at his right side. He realized with a jolt that his arm was missing from the elbow down.
At that same moment, he saw the tip of Ryuga’s katana dripping with dark red blood. A surreal, dreamlike haze washed over him as he groaned.
"Are you... for real?"
He had believed that the gaps between his scales were his only vulnerability. He had assumed his reinforced dragon hide would repel any blade that struck him head-on.
But Ryuga had defied those expectations. Having cleaved straight through the arm, Ryuga spun his body and delivered a devastating spinning back kick.
"Guaah!?"
The blow slammed into Zaraki’s stomach while he was still dazed by the loss of his limb, sending him hurtling through the air.
Koumaru watched the pathetic sight of his partner being smashed into a rock wall right beside him. His expression soured.
"Fool! I warned you not to be careless!"
"You're next, Koumaru. Are you ready?"
Ryuga, having dismantled Zaraki’s Dragon-man Form, leveled his blade at the mastermind.
Sensing the cold bloodlust radiating from the swordsman, Koumaru took a long, steady breath. Then, he began to clap.
"My, my. I’m impressed. It appears I must concede this round."
"How honest of you. Do you expect me to show mercy?"
"Hardly. I’m simply reflecting on my own blunder. After all, it was none other than I who turned you into the strongest swordsman."
"What are you talking about?"
"Oh, it's quite simple, really."
Koumaru spoke with a cryptic, lingering tone. As Ryuga glared at him, demanding an explanation, the man allowed a thin smile to cross his lips.
"I was just thinking... that I really shouldn't have interfered so much five years ago."