"Tch, that hurts… I think my finger's broken."
After reverting to his human form, Badak immediately felt something off about his finger. Lifting it, he saw it was limp—not just fractured, but completely shattered. With his Indestructible Body and Armament Haki earlier, he hadn't felt a thing.Chin Jao's Eight Impact Fist Ultimate·Coneless Dragon·Coneless Nail was far more powerful than expected—and this was actually a weakened version executed with his flattened head after losing his cone-shaped peak in old age. It proved these old-timers truly earned their reputations. Badak's victory this time involved some strategy. Though he believed he'd likely win if the fight continued, triumphing through wit was nothing to be ashamed of.
Badak placed a dandelion on his finger and immediately felt a warm current circulating through it. In the blink of an eye, his shattered finger bones healed completely. "This healing ability is too broken. Paramecia-type powers really defy logic," he muttered.
After tending to his injuries, Badak checked on Chin Jao. The old man looked utterly wretched—blood oozing everywhere, his once-white beard now stained crimson. Multiple fractures were visible in his limbs, and his head... well, his flattened head had become concave.
"This makes no sense. Luffy punched his pointy head back into shape with one hit, but my finger strike dented his skull instead," Badak questioned his life choices.
Just then, Robin and the others arrived. Daz Bones casually tossed two unconscious figures beside Chin Jao's crater.
"Who're they?" Badak pointed at the duo.
"Don't know their names, but they're definitely from the Happo Navy. When the fight started, I noticed them trying to slip away. Knocked them out to avoid complications," Robin explained.
Badak raised an eyebrow. "Thought Bonis handled it."
"Boss, you know me," Daz Bones calmly ran a finger along his blade's edge. "If it were me, they wouldn't be completely bloodless."
"Fair enough. Mansherry, patch up Chin Jao—just enough to stabilize him. Leave the limb injuries untreated."
Concerned the elderly fighter might perish from severe wounds, Badak wanted him just healthy enough to survive but too injured to resist.
"Aye, Captain Badak." Mansherry lightly hopped onto Chin Jao's body and began healing.
"Badak, how does Chin Jao compare to Moria? This fight didn't seem as intense as last time. You didn't even use your sword," Perona remarked, observing the comparatively minor destruction.
"Well, hand-to-hand worked better here. They're hard to compare directly—combat isn't about stats. But I can outline their strengths and weaknesses."
"Chin Jao masters all three Haki types with impeccable martial arts.
His Eight Impact Fist is terrifying, especially the ultimate technique—one hit would obliterate anyone without exceptional durability.
His combat experience lets him adapt to anything, but age has weakened him. In human form, I matched him strength-for-strength.
His stamina failed too—that desperate final move probably meant he saw defeat coming."
"Moria doesn't know Haki, and his physical combat and swordsmanship skills are mediocre at best, with weak fighting spirit.
But he's naturally gifted with astonishing strength—I could barely match him even in my Beast-Man Form.
Plus, the Shadow-Shadow Fruit's abilities are incredibly versatile, compensating for Moria's lack of speed and combat skills.
His ultimate move, Shadow's Asgard, is devastatingly powerful—and that's not even its limit. With more shadows, Moria could shatter an entire island in one strike."
Badak couldn't help but feel it was a waste—Moria relied too much on the Shadow-Shadow Fruit and never fully developed his exceptional physical gifts.
"Hey, Badak, guess what I found?"
Seeing Perona's excitement, Badak figured it out immediately.
"Treasure, isn't it?"
"How did you know?" Perona's eyes widened. She had sent her Negative Hollows beneath the ice to find it—she was sure even Robin wouldn't have discovered the treasure.
Badak rolled his eyes. This girl wasn't the brightest.
Robin explained for him, "Did you forget the name of this place? Jewel Ice Mountain—the treasure vault of the Happo Navy."
"Ugh, no fun at all. Let's go dig up the treasure!"
Though her attempt at suspense had failed, Perona was still thrilled about the treasure.
She spotted plenty of crowns she liked—perfect for matching the dresses in her wardrobe. She'd definitely ask Leo to make more outfits to go with them later.
"Jewel Ice Mountain won't be easy to crack, but we can try." Badak only knew that Chin Jao couldn't open it after losing his drill head. He wasn't sure if he could manage it either.
"Captain Badak, he's mostly healed now." Mansherry had trained hard to master her fruit's abilities—she no longer needed tears to heal others like before.
Badak was stunned. Though Chin Jao's limbs were still in rough shape, his body had been restored—most importantly, Mansherry had even regenerated his drill head.
If they fought now, whether Badak could withstand the Eight Impact Fist's ultimate technique, Drill Dragon Nail, was anyone's guess. He'd have to study the Eight Impact Fist carefully and prepare for a rematch with Chin Jao in his drill-headed state.
"Thank you, Mansherry. Leo, stitch these three together for now. We'll go try opening Jewel Ice Mountain first."
"Understood, Captain."
Leo swiftly weaved around the three, sewing the other two men's legs to Chin Jao's and securing his arms to his sides to prevent further injury to his fractured limbs.
Badak summoned his Somersault Cloud, loaded the prisoners onto it, and gestured for everyone to board before flying toward the direction Perona indicated.
Jewel Ice Mountain wasn't far—soon, they could see it clearly from the air, with an enormous hoard of treasure buried beneath the glacier.
Landing on the ice, Badak tapped it with his foot. "Hard as rock. Bonis, want to give it a shot?"
"Of course."
Daz Bones had been itching to cut something—there hadn't been a single worthy opponent along the way.
He hoped this glacier would be tough enough.A few minutes later, Daz Bones wanted to take back his earlier thought—this wasn't just hard enough, it was too hard. While Iron Cutting techniques could slice through some of it, according to Perona, the glacier was simply too thick.
How long would it take to cut through? Moreover, the gaps in the glacier were actually healing, just like a human wound closing up.
Badak watched the regenerating glacier, his eyes gleaming with excitement. Compared to treasure, he had discovered something far more valuable.