Hearing the Adventurers' cheers, Whitebeard could not help shaking his head. "The winds of a new era have truly swept across the entire world! The Holy Church will be making some big moves next!"
"Pops, what are you doing here?" Jozu, who had just emerged, stared at Whitebeard in bewilderment. It took him a long while to come to his senses.
"Did I... did I fail the challenge?" Jozu asked incredulously.
Whitebeard and Marco stared speechlessly at the bewildered Jozu.
"What's wrong with you, Jozu? How did you get caught up in a little Genjutsu for so long?"
"No, you don't understand. How could a world like that be a Genjutsu? Every person and object felt completely real!" Seeing Marco's teasing expression, Jozu hurried to explain.
"Was it really that convincing?" Marco asked in surprise.
"Really. A Genjutsu should feel at least a little unreal somehow, but that world was like another parallel universe. Whether it was you or Pops, you were exactly the same. If the tournament hadn't suddenly ended, I probably could've died of old age in there without ever realizing it was a Genjutsu," Jozu said, still shaken.
Meanwhile, Kaido, who had emerged alongside him, was roaring like a madman. "Impossible! How could it have been a Genjutsu? I am the emperor of the seas, the world's one and only supreme emperor! All of you must obey me!"
Seeing Kaido acting as though he had gone mad, Whitebeard and Marco began to believe Jozu's account.
"Truly frightening. The Holy Church never seems to run out of tricks," Whitebeard sighed.
"Ace, you all right, lad?" Whitebeard turned toward the silent Ace.
"So it was a dream. Haha, I should've known all along. I just didn't want to wake up," Ace murmured dejectedly.
Marco stepped forward and clapped a