Rubick had no interest in Nami's tricks. He asked Vivi, "How many days until we reach Alabasta?"
"About three days."
They were taking a direct route, so that was already fast. Rubick nodded. He just hoped nothing else would crop up.
When they reached the shore, Luffy and Usopp had returned. Rubick went over to greet them with a smile.
"Luffy, I've mastered Observation Haki. Want to see it?"
"What?"
Luffy said excitedly, "Old man, you've mastered Observation Haki?"
Luffy's voice drew Sanji and Zoro over too. Rubick waved them closer.
"Observation Haki lets you locate people from a distance," Rubick said. "More importantly, in a fight, it lets you sense what your opponent is thinking and anticipate their attacks."
Rubick picked up a stick and gave it a swing. It felt good enough.
He turned to Zoro. "Let's fight. One Sword Style."
Zoro went to the side and cut himself a straight stick. "Come on, Uncle. Show me what Observation Haki can do!"
Rubick didn't know how to use a sword. He simply held the stick straight out. "Make your move."
Zoro could tell at a glance that Rubick had no idea how to wield a sword, so he used a straightforward downward strike.
But Zoro was soon startled. Before he had even raised his stick above his head, Rubick's was already thrusting toward his face.
Zoro dropped into a crouch and changed his move, turning the downward strike into a diagonal slash. But he missed again: Rubick had already jabbed him in the arm.
Unable to put his full strength into the blow, Zoro had his strike knocked aside. His guard opened, leaving him completely exposed.
Rubick gave Zoro a token tap on the chest, then withdrew his stick.
"Did you feel that, Zoro?"
Zoro pressed his left