It wasn't just the hospital that had seen a surge of patients; a small number of people had also fallen ill within the major clans.
At first, the clans' ninja assumed some terrifying virus was ravaging the village. But after investigating, the clan heads looked at them thoughtfully.
All those poisoned were Root ninja. Danzo's authority had not yet swollen to the point where he could act without restraint. If he wanted to expand Root's ranks, he could only select people from the ANBU and the major clans.
He also needed the clan heads' approval. Once they took stock of the victims, everyone became even more puzzled. What had happened in Root? Had it suddenly been invaded by some unknown virus?
Since this involved the Hokage's upper-level decisions and the safety of many Jonin, the heads of the major clans immediately went to the Hokage's Office.
The sight nearly made the Hokage, who had been quietly smoking, choke on the spot. Staring at the gathered clan heads, he asked in confusion:
"What happened in the village that brought all of you here?"
They were all high-ranking members of their clans, though a few had not come. The Hyuga and Uchiha Clan elders remained comfortably in their respective compounds.
"This is bad, Third. For some unknown reason, a group of people in our clan has fallen ill, and quite a few Jonin have become weak. If this continues, lives will be at risk."
"Our Yamanaka Clan also has a batch of ninja who have fallen ill. We called in ninja from Konoha Hospital, but they couldn't identify the problem."
"It's the same for all of us. We need to make sure the Jonin are safe."
Even though they knew Danzo's shadow lay behind this, they did not dare say so in