An Unwelcome Visitor

The moon shone bright in a sky with few stars. The small island had little wildlife, and insects chirped only here and there.

Klahadore walked beside Rubick, half a step behind him.

"Mr. Rubick, do you have somewhere to stay tonight?"

Klahadore asked as casually as if they were chatting about the weather. "If not, I can arrange a place for you. You're an honored guest of the Anderson Family, after all. We wouldn't neglect you."

"I'll squeeze in with Usopp tonight," Rubick said. "We only just met, but we've hit it off surprisingly well."

Klahadore stopped. "In that case, please come this way. We passed his house earlier."

Rubick laughed. "Sorry, my memory isn't so good at night. In daylight, I'd never mistake a road I'd already taken."

Klahadore didn't respond. He simply escorted Rubick to Usopp's house.

After leaving, Klahadore went to the edge of a cliff. With a quick leap, he landed on a tree trunk two meters above the ground and took a travel bag from a hollow in the tree.

Either way, it's just two more people to kill. Anyone who stands in the way of my plan deserves to die.

Klahadore unzipped the bag and took out a pair of gloves. A sharp, meter-long blade extended from each finger, making them look like cat claws.

At Usopp's house, Rubick pushed the door open without ceremony.

Usopp was tinkering with a slingshot at the desk in his bedroom. He stared open-mouthed as Rubick walked in and lay down on the bed.

"Mister! Make yourself at home, why don't you? That's my bed you're lying on!"

Rubick folded his hands behind his head. "Tonight's going to be dangerous. I'd find somewhere to hide if I were you."

"This is my house, and you're telling me to leave? Besides, weren't you going to the Anderson Family's place tonight? You didn't stay there?"

Rubick closed his eyes to conserve energy. He hadn't eaten nearly enough at dinner.

Usopp grumbled, "Take your shoes off before you sleep. Don't get my sheets dirty."

Then he went back to tinkering with his slingshot. He couldn't afford a gun, so he usually practiced his aim with that instead.

"Usopp, take my advice. Someone's coming to kill me tonight. You'd better get out and hide."

Usopp instantly went numb. "Actually, I've got a disease that'll kill me if I sleep next to someone else. See you around."

Usopp gathered his slingshot and pellets and was about to head out when a tremendous noise rang through the quiet village.

Bang!

Someone kicked Usopp's door clean off its hinges. A size 43 shoeprint marked the door.

The moment Usopp saw who had arrived, his legs began to shake. The gloves Kuro wore on both hands flashed in the moonlight, filling him with fear.

"You shouldn't have come."

Kuro strolled into Usopp's house. At the sight of the cramped, shabby room, disgust spread across his face.

"Fate had other plans."

Rubick rose from the bed, put a hand on Usopp's shoulder, and hurled him through the drafty window.

Usopp rolled twice outside and scrambled to flee, but then he remembered Kaya. His gut told him that butler was no good. Kaya and her family might be in danger.

Suddenly, Usopp wasn't afraid anymore. He started singing the song Rubick had taught him and immediately found his courage.

Inside, Rubick couldn't keep the grin off his face. Usopp really was full of surprises.

Kuro pushed up his glasses with his palm. "Is that some kind of signal between you two?" he asked in a low voice.

Rubick stared at him. "Kuro, if you want to fight, get on with it. You talk too much."

"I don't waste time. I'm quite fast, actually."

Kuro pushed off the floor, closed the distance with a long stride, and raked the Cat Claws on his right hand toward Rubick's head.

Rubick could keep up with that speed. Without even using Gear Second, he slipped past Kuro's attacks with a few deft dodges.

Kuro crossed his Cat Claws before his chest, striking Wolverine's signature pose.

"You're good. Dragging this out won't do me any favors. The warm-up's over. Silent Step!"

Kuro's movements turned elusive. His leather shoes made almost no sound on the floorboards, and his speed soared. Rubick could barely follow him.

Whoosh!

Kuro darted around the bedroom like a cat, striking at Rubick whenever he had an opening. Rubick dodged nearly every attack on instinct, but Usopp's house wasn't so lucky.

Claw marks covered the bedroom walls, and the whole house began to sway.

Rubick stopped rushing. He slowly closed his eyes and relied on his senses to dodge Kuro's attacks.

Kuro frowned and came to a halt. The instant he stopped, Rubick pinpointed his position and fired a Gum-Gum Bullet at him.

Kuro had been ready to laugh. He wasn't far from Rubick, but Rubick's arm could never have reached him—or so he thought. To his shock, Rubick's arm suddenly stretched and struck him dead-on.

"Whew. Did that hit?"

Kuro stared in disbelief. "You're a Devil Fruit User?"

"Do I look stupid enough to tell you?"

Veins bulged on Kuro's forehead. He slashed through the wall behind him and jumped out. Usopp's house could take no more and collapsed with a thunderous crash.

From far down the road, Usopp looked back, tears streaming down his face. What did I ever do to deserve this? If you two have a grudge, why couldn't you fight outside?

"Cough, cough!"

Rubick covered his mouth and waved away the dust in front of him. Usopp's house had been so old that it was packed with the stuff. The moment Kuro brought it down, dust billowed everywhere.

Without walls to confine him, Kuro could make even better use of his speed. But with open space all around them, Rubick found it harder to track him.

Rubick settled into a horse stance and smiled. "Looks like I'll have to show you what I can really do."

Kuro stood five meters away. He pushed up his glasses with his palm. "Then I'll have to do the same. Rubick, try to withstand this! Shakushi!"

Kuro swayed from side to side like a pendulum, looking like a puppet on strings.

Rubick didn't dare take it lightly. He activated Gear Second at once. If I can finish this with my strongest move, why stand around charging up like Ultraman?