Zypha should have seen the big man coming at her but she had a little preoccupied keeping tabs on the surrounding rabble to make sure she did not get stabbed in the back. Realizing she had little room to move back and not enough time to dodge, she did the next best thing. Zypha steeled herself for the heavy blow from the captain. As the large man had been using such a heavy axe naturally he had quite a bit of strength in his arms; thankfully Zypha was not exactly a snowflake and instead was rough-and-tumble fighter.

Zypha gritted her teeth and dug in her heels as the fist slammed into her stomach. True to her grit, she managed to stay in place but dang the man's fist hurt. It would have done less damage if she had rolled with the punch, so to speak, but she was determined to end the fight once and for all, because she took the blow she was now in the perfect position.

"You really know how to treat a lady, now don't ya Rusty? Well let me return the favor!" With that said, she gripped the handle of the scythe still in her hand, making a nasty fist and brought it up under the man's chin. Putting all her strength into the fist, her intention was to hit the man so hard that it would knock him out, or at least put him out of commission. She wasn't about the kill someone on a marine infested island so she made sure only the fist clenched around the scythe handle would hit the pirate.

It was time to bring this brawl to a close.

As expected, the man shifted his attention and totally forgot about the terrifying existence of Lenwood. Lenwood made a spiral ground kick and rushed towards the man's position to pin him down. Lenwood breathed out a mass of air, he finally finished the problem without even using his devil fruit's power. Lenwood pressed the back of the pinned opponent against the ground and raised his right hand. Then, he slashed it down towards the back of the neck of the pinned man. The hit on the neck was aimed to knock the man into sleep and if the opponent didn't fall into the dream world, Lenwood would try to hurt him a bit before leaving.

Lenwood scanned the area, seemed some managed to overcome their own obstacles while the midnight-haired girl was still struggling. Lenwood smiled as he felt a different feeling, the awaited feeling and the lost one. He realized at that moment that all of them who were suddenly involved in a trouble had the same fate and their destiny were bonded together. Lenwood shouted, "Hey! I think we should leave! We will have more people coming if we stay here longer! Follow me!". Should they agree to follow Lenwood, Lenwood would give a last kick towards his opponent on the ground and leave the bar through the door while heading towards the port in quick pace.

Satoru looked down at is handiwork, nodding to himself. At first, he couldn't help but feel slightly guilty about injuring him like that. But when he thought about the kinds of things this man had probably done to innocents and the losses of life that he had probably taken part in, he decided to drop it. After all, this is Besides, it wasn't like he had killed him. And the tear in his leg would be easy enough for any doctor to help heal since the shard he had fired was very small and would disappear soon. Besides, hand to hand combat without using his powers was not something he was particularly used to doing. Though he supposed that he would have to get used to in on his pirates' journey.

Satoru turned his attention across the room, where the man he had seen before, who had had two other people walk up to his table, called out to them. He had a point, he supposed. "Down," he murmured, removing what little glass coating he still possessed on his fingertip. And this would definitely be his best chance at joining a crew and getting off of the island in a timely manner. And so, he nodded. But first, he had business to attend to. He walked over to the bar and pulled out a small letter from his back pocket. He set it down on the inside of the bar where it would be easy for the bartender to discover once he regained consciousness and set his glass down on top of the letter to keep it weighed down. The folded sheet of paper had "PLEASE DELIVER TO MARINE COMMANDER HIKARI" written on the front.

With that, he nodded and closed the note again, turning away and making his way toward the exit as well, though he made sure to keep an eye on his surroundings. The last thing he needed was to be attacked again so soon. Especially now that he didn't have the glass in his hand...

The Captain smirked as his fist rammed into Zypha's stomach. He completely ignored her statement. "Ha! That's what you get for-" He spoke, only for Zypha's fist to ram into his chin, cutting his words short mid-sentence. The man staggered back for a moment, and then collapsed into the ground on his back, knocked out.

The three pirates that Asus had beaten were in no position to resist, being half- drunk and covered in wounds. Asus easily managed to take a pistol from one of them.

Lenwood succeeded to knock the man out that he was pinning to the ground earlier.

The bar was now silent as Lenwood and Satoru began to leave, besides the moans of pain of the man with the bleeding leg and the injured men that were stung by the hornets.

Abigail blinked. The whole thing was over so fast. "I thought it would be longer." She said to nobody in particular. "NOt that I'm complaining." She would've said more, because it seemed the occasion required someone to narrate but the soon to be captain said it was time to go and started moving. She hesitated for a moment, maybe two before nodding and called after the man as she started following him. "A quick exit works for me. HOnestly, I can't think of any good we'd do by staying here anyways. "

Not satisfied with just a single empty pistol, Asus decided to check all three pirates downed by him for spare bullets. He was just checking the second one when the guy he was sure was behind the flyers came with the suggestion of leaving before more people came. While he knew good advice when he heard it, making sure that someone with a grudge against him was unable to shoot him in the back took preference in his mind.

He moved on to check his third and last target, and after he had taken any bullets he found for his own he followed the other three out of the bar and into adventure.

---

Total number of hornets in Asus's body 75. Number of hornets used for combat 50. hornets currently in use 0/50 dead hornets 0/50

Zypha winced a little as she looked over the knocked out captain. She was certainly going to have a bruise showing up soon. A quick survey of her surrounds revealed that there were few to no threats left to worry about. Unfortunately the Captain had very little left on him after gambling most of it away. Still she managed to pinch a few random accessories and coins before she heard Lenwood speak.

"Hey! I think we should leave! We will have more people coming if we stay here longer! Follow me!" She looked lazily at the door, "Huh, guess he must be the one who passed out those flyers I saw around. Well the marines might come here after the ruckus so I might as well go, but first..." Zypha looked at the fallen man's axe, the big unwieldy looking thing that seemed like it could split trees. Her trained eyes quickly found what she was looking for, a fracture in the handle's woodwork barely detectable to the eye. With a precise hit with the tip of her scythe she cracked and shattered the handle.

With that big of revenge done, she took a quick work at her own scythe handles, admiring the woodwork for a second, of her own design, and then wrapped the chain around her waist and put away her weapons. Striding out of the room she quickly observed the others who had been in the fight. They seemed fairly young, not that she was old mind you, but she had a feeling they would be inexperienced. Still her instincts were saying there was an opportunity in the air so she would stick around and see for now.

Lenwood managed to exit safely without attracting so much attention. There were some people who heard the ruckus and stared at the bar but as soon as Lenwood stepped the world outside, he had his face and whole body covered in a coat that he used when he disguised as a trader. He quickly turned left and entered an alleyway he passed when he arrived in Arlen.

He took the chance to stare his back and to his surprise, the people he encountered in the bar were following behind. "Hmm.. They really love their lives." Lenwood smirked and mumbled. On an alleyway just before the port, he stopped on the edge. His body stretched and his head made the way out, his eyes were scanning the area but he noticed a group of marines were talking on the port, it could be another obstacle the group of troublemakers must face before leaving this island completely. On that moment, he referenced the group as troublemakers, only for easy temporary reference.

Lenwood was about to make a move but he noticed that the group of marines was running, Lenwood turned his head and mentioned, "It seems the marines heard about the bar fight. We should attempt an escape, fast, before they notice we, the troublemakers, are here. Let's go, board my ship!". Lenwood covered his face once again and ran towards his ship. Should some questioned why they should board on his ship, Lenwood would easily reply that it's for their own safety and they can talk about it when they are away from the port.

Lenwood shoved several people while running and eventually, he managed to get back safely to his baby ship. When he jumped on, he shouted to the rest of the group, hoping for the last person on board to do it. "Cut the rope!" There was a rope that tied his ship with the port so it wouldn't be carried by the waves of the sea.

Abigail followed closely behind the apparent pirate captain watching him closely for any sign of danger. To her he seemed to be doing his best to act casual. It made sense. So she tried to do the same, but found she couldn't pull her hand off of her sword's handle. Oh well. The whole of life is a journey of learning and being easy while in danger was just another thing she'd have to put on the list of things she'd learn to do.

"An escape sounds like a good idea." She followed behind the leader onto his boat. He said to cut the rope and her blade appeared in her hand. It felt good holding on to it as it felt like an anchor keeping her attached to the past life. "I'll get it." She looked around and noted everyone wasn't on yet. "Just as soon as everyone gets on board." So she held the sword's edge above the rope, waiting for the rest.

Zypha took a moment to take in the vessel. Well it certainly could use some improvements that was for sure, but it would at least get her off the island and the marines. "Well I guess my time here got cut a little short, not that I'm complaining mind you." She said, mostly to herself as she jumped onto the ship.

"Who would have thought that my win in a simple card game would have brought about such a turn of events. Well I can certainly say it wasn't boring at least. I just hope this turns out to be for my own benefit." Zypha took a good look at the others who were making their way onto the ship. An interesting adventure was about to unfold but at the moment there was little to go off of. The next few days would mark the start of something new.

Satoru looked on as the entire group seemed to leave the bar almost immediately upon the young man's suggestion. So, it seemed like they were all together then, for better or for worse. He smiled slightly at the thought. He could hardly believe that he was actually going through with this. He cast a glance to the side, noticing the Marines starting to approach the bar already. "Wow...that's faster than their usual response times," he murmured under his breath.

He kept his head low, trying to avoid any sign of detection from any of the marines. The last thing he wanted was for them to find out that he'd joined a crew already. In fact, he wanted to make sure he went undetected for as long as possible. He definitely didn't want anybody to know just what crew he had decided to join so soon.

He approached the boat that their apparent captain had led them to. It was...not quite what he had expected. Clearly, this was just a small and temporary ship. This thing would probably never last too long out there in the rough seas of the Grand Line. He put his first foot forward...then stopped himself. He couldn't help but hesitate; he was about to enter a world he knew nothing of. For the first time, he'd be stepping out of a comfortable, routine life and into one that was less predictable. But a few seconds later, he smiled to himself.

"...Sounds like fun," he murmured under his breath again. He then continued his walk, stepping quickly onto the ship. "Alright, ready to sail." he announced toward the girl who stood ready to cut the rope that anchored them to the port.

Eventually, everyone managed to unite on the ship. As Abigail cut the rope, the ship took off immediately, not stopped by anyone. The Marines who went to investigate the brawl in the bar had apprehended the Rustsilver pirates. Some bystanders informed the Marines that there were five other individuals involved in the brawl, but they could not be found. They did find Satoru's note, however, which they would take to Commander Hikari.

Due to their quick departure and normal looking flag, the pirate crew managed to escape. They were not hindered by anyone, merely appearing as yet another trader's ship that left the island. The needle on Asus's Log Pose pointed to the east, where the next island was. There was nothing in plain sight, however. It seemed like it would take a good while before they would arrive at the next island. They were now a very good distance away from Arlen.

"Looks like there is an island to the east of here, though it is either pretty far away or very small." If there was a town Asus was planning to sell the bullets and pistol he took in the bar, since he couldn't use them anyway. For now though he was busy watching the clouds and the water in order to check for any sudden weather changes or other weird occurrences that might put the ship in danger.

"I'm not seeing any signs of storm. But since I'm still new as a navigator and have absolutely no experience with the Grand Line yet, I would still suggest everyone is careful just in case." Having warned the others he went back to looking for weather patterns that could indicate danger.

---

Total number of hornets in Asus's body 75. Number of hornets used for combat 50. hornets currently in use 0/50 dead hornets 0/50

Once the ship had successfully pulled away from the dock of Arlen Island, Satoru knew that there was no more going back. So for now, he decided to take a quick look around the new ship and take in their accommodations. Well...it certainly wasn't the prettiest ship he'd ever seen, but at least it seemed functional enough. And there was plenty of room here for the five members. He just hoped that this ship wouldn't be permanent, considering the much grander pirate ships he had seen in his lifetime.

He soon returned to the deck where he looked at the man whom he assumed was responsible for gathering this makeshift crew together in that bar. At that point, one of the men with them began to talk, addressing which direction they'd be heading in and the weather conditions. He nodded at that. He wasn't completely comfortable with the idea that their navigator was new to the task, but it wasn't like he had any greater knowledge. After all, he had specialized his knowledge in medical care.

Once he was done, he turned back to the man he suspected would become their captain. "Excuse me," Satoru said, reaching out one of his hands toward Lenwood. "My name is Satoru. I assume that you were the one who passed out those fliers back in the bar, right? You were the one looking to form a pirate crew?"

All the troublemakers were on board, their escape was smoothly done and Lenwood chuckled at the situation. Lenwood thanked the girl who cut the rope off because of that they could sail right now. Of course, that girl herself piqued Lenwood's interest on her. Just few minutes ago, everyone didn't know each other that much but they were tied into the mess together. The situation where they gathered in one place was even funnier. The midnight-haired girl said something about the game and yes, Lenwood acknowledged the cause of this trouble was the game. "Yes, everyone loses their temper when they lose especially to a girl." Lenwood gave out a wide smile.

Lenwood's ship was bought with his own money the other day and it wasn't much for a ship but he believed the ship could sustain until the moment when Lenwood found his true crew mates as well as until the moment he reached the half part of the Grand Line. Lenwood startled after he noticed that a brown-haired man had an experience in navigating, all of it could be seen when he possessed a log pose used to navigate around the grand line. "Make it east then. We should keep sailing, away from Arlen." Lenwood made a statement as he rotated the helm of the ship towards east.

The brown-haired man also announced that there was no sign of storm. Lenwood could sigh in relief for now and he appreciated that man effort. "Great to hear that, man. Even you're new, you're pretty good." Lenwood praised him. "What's your name by the way?" Lenwood asked politely. Another man from the group approached Lenwood who was on the deck. He asked about the previous situation and Lenwood knew it's time for the truth, no turning back. "Call me Lenwood. Yes, I am. I'm the one who distribute the flyers. Are you interested?" Lenwood wondered if that man had an interest in this kind of subject.

The ship was underway and there was no turning back now. While she started to thoroughly examine the ship she heard Lenwood say to her, "Yes, everyone loses their temper when they lose especially to a girl." Zypha smiled wryly, "Even you I suppose el Capitan? Well I'll have to test that out sometime." With her piece said she returned to her task of scoping out the vessel.

The vessel turned toward the Log Pose and Zypha made mental notes of how the ship handled the change of course. Needless to say the vessel lacked quite a bit of charm. As she inspected the ship her keen eyes noticed every detail, how the ship creaked when hit by the waves in a certain location, how the mast was just slightly crooked, how, thankfully, the hull was rather stable, and the certain lack of decoration pretty much everywhere. "My new toy, we are going to have to modify you quite a bit I see. Ah well at least it allows me actually work, heh."

After inspecting both the inside and outside of the ship, Zypha quickly made some mental notes on what desperately needed attention. She had never actually been a shipwright before but she knew her way around wood to be sure. She made her way back on deck and went over the starboard railing to have a breather. Then as somewhat of an afterthought she shouted to make sure the crew could hear. ""If anyone was wondering, name's Zypha Celtus. Don't really give a crap one way or the other but just remember I'll be the one keeping this tub afloat. And make sure you don't run into any reefs now or ever navigator, cause this boat could pop like an overripe tomato. Just keep that in mind."

Satoru turned his attention away from his own conversation once he realized that somebody else had begun talking as well. It seemed like she wasn't directly saying anything to anybody in particular, but it was rather important to know. He quickly made a mental note of what she had to say. Zypha Celtus, shipwright. He smiled slightly. So, it would seem that they have a navigator, a shipwright and now a doctor. Conveniently enough, it was quite a lucky crew, considering the fact that they were the only takers and not one of them copied each other's positions so far.

Satoru quickly turned his attention back to the captain of the ship. "Yeah, I would say that I am," he said with a hint of amusement. "Trust me; if I wasn't, I wouldn't have followed you. I figured that a pirate medic was somewhat hard to find. So, my medical expertise should probably come in handy as your ship's doctor." He then paused and looked back at the ship behind him. "...Though I'm not sure I'll be THAT much help until I can get some medical supplies."

Great to hear that, man. Even you're new, you're pretty good.What's your name by the way?" While Asus was happy with the compliments coming from the guy who seemed to be the captain and owner of the ship,he was still worried about any nasty surprises the sea might have for them. The comment from Zypha didn't help him relax anymore either, quite the opposite in fact.

"And make sure you don't run into any reefs now or ever navigator, cause this boat could pop like an overripe tomato. Just keep that in mind." "Didn't really need the added stress, but don't let it be said that Asus Pires ever ignored the advice of a pretty girl." Having said what he want to say he placed his focus onto his duties once more, knowing that eventually he would confident enough in his skills to talk and mingle with the others even when they were out at sea.

---

Total number of hornets in Asus's body 75. Number of hornets used for combat 50. hornets currently in use 0/50 dead hornets 0/50

Some time had passed. The ship had been traveling for a few days, being quite lucky with the weather despite some massive changes in temperature here and there. It was often extremely cold, or blazingly hot. Right now however, the temperature seemed normal. The crew could see an island appearing on the horizon. It was too small to make out how it looked yet.

~~~~On the Island further ahead, the island Erdol~~~~

There was a small beach upon the island, with a few docks. There was a small village as well, lying nearby. There appeared to be a large forest behind the village, which covered most of the island. The stone houses appeared to be in rather poor condition. Several townsfolk wandered around the village, minding their own business. The town seemed quite peaceful.

"Attention, ATTENTION!" A loud voice roared, abruptly bringing an end to the silence. A marine soldier stood in the center of town, with a large bag rested on the ground beside him. "Weekly donation to our amazing captain as appreciation for our protection! COME ON! ON WITH IT!" The man barked. All the people hurried over towards the center, throwing in many golden pieces of Beri.

The marine was completely silent, and stared into the bag. "EHHH?! IS THIS ALL THE BERI YOU HAVE?! THIS ISN'T EVEN CLOSE TO 300 GOLD!" He roared. "Sir, please! We don't have any more money! Please, tell the captain to keep protecting us!" A man shouted. The navy soldier laughed into the man's face. "Ha! As if-" The man muttered, only to be cut off by a woman's scream.

"P...PIRATES..!!" She screamed to the navy soldier, pointing over at the approaching pirate ship that Lenwood commanded, which was still far away but closing in. "That's not our problem...anymore." The Navy soldier coldly spoke, and began to walk away. An old man rushed over towards the soldier, and grabbed him by the arm. "Sir, I am the village elder..please, reconsi-" The man muttered, only for the soldier to smash his elbow right into the man's face, knocking him on the ground. "Hands off, geezer!" He spat. He grabbed the large bag of Beri and ran down the path that led into the woods.

As the pirate ship reached the island, there was nobody to see. It seemed as if there was nobody in the town at all. There wasn't a single noise, besides the waves that splashed against the beach and some birds chirping.

Lenwood stopped for a moment. He realized a tough woman was on board. He confidently replied to Zypha's statement,"Are you sure? I don't think you can ever beat me. Anyway, I'm up for your challenge. Soon, we'll see" . He finally realized why one could lose his or her temper against her, she was more like a man, the way she talked. "Wew, a tough one. Nice to meet you, Zypha and it's great to hear that you will keep this very ship alive until we can get a better one later."

He returned his attention to the man he spoken to. The one who showed some interest on the crew recruitment. Lenwood's face became brighter as he realized the whole group was filled with individuals with different skills. "What a luck! The goddess must love me! Well, glad you're on board, Doc. I hope you can.. ugh.. help us to stay healthy." Lenwood picked his words carefully because he didn't know what to say about the doc's task even if they were strangers, Lenwood decided to trust him with medical practices for the crew.

On that very moment, he gained the name of the other, the current navigator on duty was called Asus. Quite an interesting name and an interesting person as well. Lenwood smiled once again at the situation.



The group hadn't officially band into one crew and Lenwood couldn't decide when the right time to announce everything. However, as he saw the chance when everyone on board and busy with their tasks. He shouted happily, "From today on ward, this group will be one. I know, we're strangers to each other but we definitely can work everything out. I set my eyes on you from the first time we met and it's destiny that we met here by the same situation that happened to us. ARE YOU GUYS WITH ME?" He hoped that everyone decided to join Lenwood in his journey to the end of the world, in search for the amazing treasure while getting stronger. "I know it sounds selfish but the days ahead us are even brighter for each of us. You all have dreams and goals for the life right? What you need is a friend to support you and I will be that friend."

The ship had been travelling for few days and the supplies were really low, it was time to ressuply. Fortunately, an island was nearby and it was their next destination where the log pose pointed to. Lenwood had no much knowledge regarding the island but it seemed peaceful. "Unload things we need only!" He ordered the others politely while he tied the ship onto the dock. "This is scary. Looks like the town is abandoned." Lenwood stated as there was nobody in sight.