A blink of an eye later, it was time to depart. Outside Shaki's Rip-off Bar, Badak had already bid farewell to everyone—except Hancock, who lingered behind.
"Badak, won't you really stay?"
"Hancock, we each have our own paths. This parting is only temporary. As long as we remain active on these seas, we'll meet again eventually."
"Here—a parting gift from me, Sandersonia, and Marigold."Hancock handed Badak a package, which he casually took over. Feeling that it contained some books, he scratched his head and said, "As expected of a girl, so thoughtful. I didn't prepare anything like this. Can I open it now?"
"Open it on the way."
"Alright then. Well, goodbye! Hancock, and everyone, I'll miss you all. Leo, Mansherry, let's go."
"Let's go!"
"Safe travels, young Badak."
"Mansherry, come visit us sometime!"
"Badak, don't go charging into storms again."
"Don't jinx it. I'm off."
With those final words, Badak piloted the ship skyward, quickly disappearing into the distance.
As Badak and his companions vanished from sight, Rayleigh took a swig from his ever-present flask. "Well, Badak's right—we'll meet again sooner or later. Now, I'll train you properly. On the open seas, you've still got a long way to go in terms of strength!"
"Rayleigh, please train us rigorously. We're counting on you!" Hancock said with utmost seriousness, her expression stern.
"We're counting on you!" Sandersonia and Marigold echoed in unison.
"Don't worry. I just hope you won't give up halfway. Let's go—we need a different training spot. This place isn't spacious enough."
Badak's ship soon left the Sabaody Archipelago far behind. He unwrapped the bundle Hancock had given him. "Books, as expected. Navigation: From Basics to Mastery, Guide to Sailing the West Blue, Medical Compendium of Drum Kingdom, Knitting Encyclopedia: 108 Techniques Revealed... Huh, and one unnamed handwritten manual: Nine Snake Haki Training Method. This is really..."
Though Badak had learned about Haki development from Shanks, those were just Shanks' personal insights—his own understanding based on how he had cultivated his Haki. People's physiques and aptitudes differ; sometimes, the gap between individuals is wider than between humans and animals.
Despite his short training period, Badak had already noticed many issues, but he had no way to seek answers. Shanks was currently wandering around the East Blue, so Badak could only experiment and figure things out on his own. Now, like a pillow arriving just when one needs sleep, Hancock's Nine Snake Haki Training Method—a systematic Haki training regimen open to all warriors of Amazon Lily—offered more generalized and comprehensive knowledge, perfectly solving Badak's pressing problem.
"Mansherry, Leo, time to share the gifts!"
"Badak, what kind of gifts? Something tasty?"
"It's knowledge."
"Eh?"
...
Badak had two ways to quickly reach the West Blue: one was to fly along the Red Line past the Calm Belt to the South Blue, then cross the Red Line again to the West Blue; the other was to first cross the Red Line, then fly along it past the Calm Belt directly to the West Blue.
He ultimately chose the second option because the first would take him over Marineford—and running into Borsalino by chance would be less than ideal.
The existence of the Calm Belt was utterly illogical—dead calm waters with massive creatures lurking beneath. Fortunately, flying at high altitude spared them any worries.
Badak wondered: Did storms from afar just stop upon reaching the Calm Belt? What about tsunamis? It all seemed like the work of Devil Fruit powers. If humans could harness such power, storms and tsunamis would become things of the past.
"The air's moving again—did we cross it that fast?"
Feeling the faint breeze against his face, Badak flew the ship forward a while longer before finally descending and settling on the sea's surface, well clear of the Calm Belt.
"Illusia, Illusia... Found it. Here. Ah, still so far away."
After poring over the map, Badak finally located his homeland."Leo, Mansherry, let's sail by sea next. We can't keep flying all the time."
"Sure, that works."
"I don't mind either. It'll be a good chance for Badak to learn navigation."
"I do need to learn navigation, but what about training? The Handsome Monkey King is a bit too small."
"Exactly, Badak! I can barely move around!"
Leo completely agreed with Badak—he could run just a few steps before reaching the end of the ship.
Mansherry didn't say anything, just smiled at Leo. She didn't mind the small ship; in fact, its size meant she could always keep an eye on him.
"Got it! If I can control the Somersault Cloud to fly upward, I can control it downward too."
Badak had a sudden idea. He bundled the Somersault Cloud around himself like a blanket and reshaped it until it became a piece of clothing. With a thought, an immediate downward force acted on him.
"Now the full-body weight training is all set. Every movement, whether sitting, lying, walking—each action becomes a workout. But there's only one Somersault Cloud—how to coordinate training for three people? Leo, you'll temporarily take on the lookout's duties while I study the abilities."
"No problem, Captain."
Badak restored the Somersault Cloud to its original form, then split it into three tendrils. One coiled around Badak himself, slowly transforming into clothing, while the other two wrapped around Leo and Mansherry.
"Captain Badak, this outfit is really beautiful."
Leo and Mansherry loved these cloud garments.
"I hope you'll still like them in a moment."
Badak began applying downward force.
"It's so heavy, Captain! This outfit has gotten so heavy—I can't move!"
Mansherry, who hadn't undergone much training, was the first to struggle. Badak quickly reduced the pressure.
"Sorry, Mansherry. From now on, I'll gradually increase the weight. Report how you feel at any time."
"Mm, okay, Captain."
Mansherry responded softly, somewhat embarrassed.
"Mansherry, don't be embarrassed. You just haven't trained yet. Besides, you're our doctor—I don't need you to fight. The reason I'm training your stamina is so you'll have enough energy to use your abilities and escape when in danger. So don't push yourself too hard, understand?"
"Mm, I understand. Captain."
"Good."
Badak continued refining the Somersault Cloud weight-training system. Since the cloud was a single entity, he couldn't apply different forces to each person. Fortunately, he discovered that the proportion of the cloud on each person's body determined the pressure they felt. Badak had the most cloud coverage, bearing the greatest pressure, followed by Leo, then Mansherry.
To balance endurance and training effects, Badak set his and Leo's pressure at one times gravity, while Mansherry's was at 0.2 times. This meant Badak and Leo were constantly under double gravity, while Mansherry experienced 1.2 times gravity.
"We'll start with this and improve it later."
"Captain Badak, pirates spotted ahead! They're firing at a merchant ship!"
"Haha, pirates from the West Blue? Bring the ship closer!"
After shouting, Badak realized he was the one steering. He glanced at the battlefield—the pirates were after plunder, and the merchant ship could hold out a little longer. Since there was no immediate danger, he clumsily maneuvered their ship toward the pirate vessel.