They walked back through the town together in search of a hotel. Zoro noticed how Silver kept to the back of the group, leaving a distance between them, as if to suggest that he had no interest in being associated with them.
As he inspected the mysterious figure, Zoro noticed that at no time was Silver ever fully relaxed. His eyes were always darting around, analyzing his surroundings, and his body was tensed. There was something strange about their new companion, but Zoro shrugged it off. Silver had his own situation, and Zoro wasn't one to pry.
As if feeling his eyes on him, Silver's sharp gaze turned to meet with Zoro's. He studied Zoro for a second, then seemed to deem him harmless, and returned to previous state.
"Hey guys, this place should do." Nami's voice penetrated through his thoughts. Zoro looked at the building in front of him and snorted with amusement. The windows and doors were barred. Yes indeed, this place would do just fine.
A few seconds later, the door of the hotel came crashing down. Sanji strolled through the doors and looked around. Spotting the innkeeper's wife, his eyes turned to hearts, and he quickly made his way over to the terrified woman.
"My dear lady, I have never seen someone that rivaled your beauty. Forgive me for imposing myself, but would you be so kind as to provide us with a couple rooms for the night. And if you would like to accompany me for a glass of wine, I wouldn't mind at all."
The innkeeper's face turned red with anger at the sight of a pirate flirting with his wife, and in spite of the fact that he was scared to death, walked over to his wife and planted himself between her and Sanji.
"I-if you w-would like a room then kindly take yourself o-over to the counter and leave my wife alone."
Nami walked up to the man after providing Sanji with a decent-sized bump on his head, and secured the rooms. As the group turned to walk up the stairs, Robin noticed that Silver wasn't following.
"Silver-san, are you not coming?" she asked.
"As far as I am concerned, there is no reason for me to join you. I'll meet you tomorrow morning at the docks, but I have no desire to spend more time with you than I need to." Silver said, turning to walk out.
"But wait!" Luffy's earnest voice cut in. "Were friends now aren't we? It's no fun if you go off on your own."
For the first time since they had met, Zoro noticed a flash of emotion enter Silver's face. His eyes welled with momentary anger, but he soon gained control of himself, and it disappeared in an instant. Zoro didn't think anyone else had noticed, but when Silver spoke, his words and tone clearly conveyed the anger that was no longer visible.
"Friends? I don't recall ever agreeing to such a thing. I have no desire nor any need for friends. Make sure you don't forget that." With that said Silver turned on his heel and walked out of the building, leaving silence in his wake.
The others looked on, surprised by Silver's sudden outburst. But Luffy wasn't the type to let such things bother him. They would see Silver again in the morning, and Luffy could work on convincing Silver to be their nakama then. For now, he was tired and hungry.
"Saaaaaaaanji, MEAT!!" Luffy screamed, pouncing on the cook, and startling them all from their daze.
As a disgruntled Sanji went to appease his captain's stomach, the rest of the crew made their way to their rooms. But, when Franky turned around, he noticed that Robin wasn't following. She was still staring at the doorway from which Silver had left.
"Oi, Robin! You coming?" he asked. Robin shook herself from her daze, and turned to answer him.
"Mmmm. I'm not tired yet. I think I'm going to go out for a walk."
Franky considered the matter for a few more seconds. There was something off about Robin. But then he shook it off. As far as he was concerned, Robin could handle herself. If there was something on her mind, she'd tell them later if it was important enough.
"Alright, see ya later."
Robin watched as Franky walked up the stairway and to the room that he was sharing with Chopper, Sanji, and Ussop. Then she turned and left building, carefully lifting the door back up after her.
There was something about Silver that bothered her. The way he was so resistant to making bonds with others, reminded her a bit of herself before she had joined the crew. She began walking through the abandoned town as the memories flooded into her head.
She was nearing the docks when she spotted Silver. She hadn't been looking for him, but now that she saw him, she wondered if she should go speak to him. He was sleeping under a tree without any sort of covering. She watched him for a few seconds before turning back. It was none of her business to pry into Silver's life. If he wanted to, he would tell them all later. For now, she should leave him alone.
Silver watched as Robin's figure retreated back toward the inn and loosened his grip on the dagger that was hidden underneath his cloak. He wondered what her intention had been, but now that she was leaving, it had nothing to do with him anymore.
If it wasn't for the fact that he was in a hurry to leave this dreary town, he would never have even considered traveling with them. The swordsman he had met in the bar seemed alright, but the captain was way too clingy for his liking.
He sighed, if worst came worst, he could just kill them all and be rid of the whole matter. But he wanted to avoid that if he could. Meaningless slaughter held no taste for him. With another sigh, he turned onto his side and drifted off into an uneasy sleep.
The next morning, when the Mugiwara pirates arrived at the docks, they found Silver already waiting for them. He said nothing as they approached, simply waiting for them to reach the ship.
"Good morning, Silver-san" Robin greeted him. Silver turned to look at her, and after what seemed like a second's deliberation, nodded in response.
"SILVER!" Luffy yelled, launching himself at, what he considered to be, their new member.
Silver smoothly sidestepped the flying captain, conscious of the fact that he probably shouldn't hurt the man who was about to give him a free ride. As if she had read his thoughts, Nami approached him with an intimidating look on her face.
"If you think you're getting off with a free ride, I'd think again. I'll get that money out of you one way or another." With that said, she turned back to the ship and made her way up the rope ladder.
Zoro grunted with amusement. "Welcome to the group mate. Now I'm not the only one who owes something to that devil-woman."
Not two seconds later, he and Sanji were at each other's necks. Silver looked on at the scene for a few seconds, not sure of what to make of it. He noticed that the others completely ignored the matter, and deemed it a regular occurrence. He then made his way up the rope ladder after Ussop, who upon noticing this, sprinted up the ladder.
After they had set sail, and Nami had the boat safely on course, the crew fell into its regular routine. Sanji took up his post in the kitchen, Robin was reading a book on a lounge chair on the deck, Zoro was in the crow's nest lifting weights, Franky was tinkering with some new creation below decks, and Luffy, Ussop, and Chopper were playing some sort of game that required the use of the entire ship.
Silver made his way to the railing and sat down with his back resting against the side of the ship. He was unsure of what to make of this crew yet. While most of them seemed like a harmless bunch, there was no way they would have made it this far on the Grand Line if that were true. He had heard rumors about the Mugiwara Pirates, but so far he had seen nothing as to confirm them. But, if he had learned something in his life, it was never to underestimate an opponent. Always assume that the enemy is stronger than you, and you will never be caught off guard.
Silver shook himself out of his thoughts as he noticed that Ussop was warily approaching him. He looked up to acknowledge the fact that he had noticed his presence, and waited for him to speak. Ussop cleared his throat several times before he was ready.
"You know we can't just let anyone on this ship. I don't know who you are, but you're going to have to pass my investigation if you want to stay here."
Silver's only response was to raise one eyebrow. He didn't bother to mention that since they had already set sail, the crew was pretty much stuck with dragging him along, unless they decided to try and throw him overboard. And if they tried to that, he could assure them that he wasn't going down alone.
A couple minutes later, Silver and Ussop were both sitting at a table. Robin chuckled at the scene, reminded of how she had been forced to undergo the same treatment.
"Ahem, so Silver, I'm going to need to know what your past occupations have been." Ussop began.
"I don't see how it's any of your business." Silver responded evenly. Ussop looked like he was going to argue, but decided to let the matter go after meeting Silver's gaze.
"O-oh r-right. Well then, do you have a bounty on your head?" Silver raised an eyebrow at the question.
"I'm pretty sure that wouldn't be too hard a matter to figure out for yourself."
By now the entire crew was gathered around the table, amused by Ussop's unwillingness to argue Silver's lack of cooperation. The interrogation continued on for a couple more minutes before Ussop conceded defeat. Silver got up from the chair and returned to his previous position, as if he had never been interrupted. Not too long after, he was once again approached, this time by Zoro.
"I was thinking. If you've been traveling on the Grand Line solo, you'd have to be pretty strong. What kind of weapon do you use?" he asked.
Silver pulled out two pieces of metal from under his cloak. They were in the shape of a semicircle, with the curved part sharpened like a blade. In the middle of dull edge, there was a hand hold. Silver grasped one of these weapons in each hand and held them out for Zoro to inspect.
"I'm also quite skilled with the dagger, and I have some experience with the sword, but these are my weapon of choice."
Zoro inspected the two curved blades with interest before asking, "Would you mind sparring with me? I've never fought against this kind of blade before, and I'd like to see how skilled you are. Not to mention there's nothing better to do."
Silver considered the request for a moment before conceding. There certainly didn't seem to be any better way of passing the time.
"Very well, you have yourself an opponent." With that said, he shrugged off his cloak. This simple act elicited many gasps from the rest of the crew, and caused Zoro to stand there for a few moments staring.
On Silver's waist, covered up by his cloak, were two long daggers meant for fighting with. Along his left arm and down his right leg were twenty more daggers holstered into position. These daggers were shorter and meant for throwing. Also, across his back, a short sword was sheathed.
"Got enough weapons there?" Zoro asked sarcastically.
"Yes, quite enough I should think." Silver replied in full seriousness, "But I don't think I'll be needing these for a small sparring match."
Silver reached down and unbuckled the daggers attached to his arm and leg, and detaching the sword from his back. However, he left the two daggers attached to waist.
The rest of the crew looked on as the two men readied their stances. Zoro was the first to attack, lunging forward with his three swords. Silver easily parried the blow and used the motion to swing into a counterattack. Soon the ship was filled with the clash of metal on metal, and the time between each clash became shorter and shorter as the two got more and more into the fight. They seemed to be evenly matched, and neither could gain more than a small advantage on the other before it was stripped away once more.
They were both sweating freely as they readied themselves for their final attack. This time it was Silver who attacked first. Zoro met his blades head on with the two in his hands, but the third one kept going. Silver almost noticed it too late and leapt back in time to suffer nothing less than a small tear in his shirt. Then both he and Zoro launched back into each other and after a series of complicated movements, they stood at a standstill. Each held their blade at the other's neck.
By this point, they were both breathing hard. As they lowered their blades they both eyed each other with a new respect. For Silver, it was the first time he had ever met someone with the strength to match him. No, from what he had felt, if they had both been going at their full power, there was a good chance that Zoro was stronger than him. It battered against his pride to admit it, but Silver was one to give credit where credit was due, and Zoro certainly deserved it.
As they sheathed their weapons, Sanji's voice came from the kitchens, announcing that lunch was ready. Silver was re-attaching his numerous weapons when Nami came up to him.
"If you would like, I could mend that tear in your shirt for you. Of course, there'll be a small fee involved."
Silver looked at the tear in his shirt, it wasn't anything that bad, but he would need to get it fixed. He nodded to Nami, and she held her hand out for the shirt as well as the money. He gave her the money easily, but he had been hoping that he could change into another shirt in a less public area. There was a reason he always wore long sleeves and pants, and he felt reluctant to take off his shirt in front of everyone, quite aware of what the reaction would be.
Nami noticed this sudden reluctance, but could not imagine any reason for it. Finally, Silver conceded and pulled the shirt off. The reaction was exactly as he'd expected. Everyone that had been watching the exchange let out a gasp, attracting the attention of those who had already started to head for the kitchen. They turned back to look, only to stand transfixed at the sight before them. Every inch of Silver's skin was covered with numerous scars. There was barely any free space left on his upper torso where one could see unblemished skin.
Silver shrugged off their gaze and pulled another shirt out from his belongings, slipping it over his head. He turned back to face the rest of the crew, his eyes challenging them to ask any questions. When none did, he headed nonchalantly to the kitchen. After a few hours of fighting, he had worked up an appetite. It was time to see if Sanji's cooking was as good as everyone claimed it was.
