Aside from the part used to encapsulate natural energy, the pill contained nothing but starch.
After taking it, they all felt a sudden heat spread through their bodies, accompanied by a wave of agitation. However, the feeling quickly subsided.
Orochimaru observed their reactions closely and nodded in approval.
He then turned to Genma and asked, "Who is in charge of the patrol for the Hokage's Tower?"
As members of the Guard Corps, they were required to be aware of all such assignments. Genma answered immediately, "That would be Hyuga Hayato."
Hyuga Hayato? The name registered with Orochimaru. "Bring him in."
"Yes, sir!"
Genma quickly returned with Hyuga Hayato.
"Lord Fifth Hokage."
With a grunt of acknowledgment, Orochimaru handed him a pill. "Eat this."
Without hesitation, Hayato swallowed it.
He instantly felt his body heat up as a small entity began to emerge from his back, growing larger. Due to the limited natural energy, the white creature that crawled out was small and stunted.
"How can this be..." the White Zetsu rasped, confused as to why it was suddenly resonating with the chakra of its host.
Startled, Hayato spun around and struck it down with a Gentle Fist attack. The small White Zetsu collapsed to the ground like a heap of mud.
Orochimaru was pleased with the result. The drug was simple to create and could be mass-produced. However, the limited supply of natural energy meant it had to be done in batches.
"Lord Hokage, what just happened?" Hayato asked, completely unaware of what had been happening to his body.
Orochimaru chuckled softly. "It's a type of surveillance known as the Spore Technique."
A cold sweat broke out on Hayato's brow. To think that he, a guard, had been unknowingly infected for so long was unbelievable.
After a moment of thought, Orochimaru gave his orders. "It's possible many others in the village have been infected by this Spore Technique. You three, divide the village into ten sectors and bring one Anbu member from each for testing. Also, summon the teammates who were on duty with you."
"Yes, sir!"
Hearing this, Hayato felt a sense of foreboding descend upon the village. Genma and his two comrades cautiously took a map and began dividing the work.
Hayato's colleagues were nearby and arrived shortly. Without much explanation, Orochimaru had each of them take a pill. The result was the same for all of them: a White Zetsu emerged from each person's body.
One of them, a man named Hyuga Asahi, even had three White Zetsu burst from him. Now prepared, Hayato swiftly subdued every creature that appeared.
Orochimaru then ordered the samples to be taken away for analysis. He had experimented on these simple-minded beings before; interrogating them was pointless. Their very composition was more plant than sentient creature.
The priority now was to find the source of the spores.
Meanwhile, Genma and his partners divided the sectors as planned and brought in the ten designated Anbu members for testing. Each was given a pill to check for parasitic infection. This time, however, the results showed that none of them were infected.
This brought Orochimaru a small measure of relief. He glanced at the clock on the wall. "It's currently noon."
He then turned to Hyuga Hayato and issued another command. "I want you to immediately gather all other security personnel and have them assemble at Training Ground 6."
The Hyuga squad leader now understood the gravity of the situation. His entire team had been compromised, yet shinobi from other units were unaffected. The implications were grim.
He bowed deeply. "Yes, Lord Hokage! I will assemble the entire Security Division at once!"
Kawasaki had already explained the principles of the Spore Technique to Orochimaru. It couldn't spread on its own; it had to be cast by a person. In other words, there was a single source for all these spores. Furthermore, the caster had to make physical contact with the target for the spores to be transmitted.
Initially, Orochimaru feared that the village's secret units might have been infected as well, but the investigation revealed they'd had no contact with the caster. The problem was isolated to the patrol teams, with four members found to be carrying a total of six spores.
If it were just this one squad, it might have been a coincidence. But if the entire Security Force was infected, the situation would be far more dire.
The current force was composed entirely of Hyuga clan members, which meant the source of the problem was likely among them.
Orochimaru's brow furrowed. He turned to Raidō Namiashi at his side. "Bring the Third Hokage here."
...
Anxiety gnawed at Hyuga Hayato as he headed toward the security headquarters.
It was lunchtime, and many of the squad members were on break. Though Hayato was only a squad leader, he had earned the trust of his elder, Hizashi. Since Hizashi's promotion to advisory elder, his schedule had become much busier, so he had delegated the task of assigning missions to Hayato.
Suddenly, he barked out an order. "Everyone, listen up! Assemble at Training Ground 6 immediately!"
Everyone stopped what they were doing and quickly formed up, following Hayato toward the designated location.
There were about sixty shinobi on duty, not counting those still on patrol outside. Most of them were from the branch family, and their combat skills were formidable.
Before long, the group had departed from the headquarters.
Just then, a White Zetsu emerged from the ground. "Why did the spore on Hayato suddenly activate?" it muttered to itself before sinking back into the earth and disappearing.
...
Tobi was enjoying some local street food in an alley when he suddenly sensed something was wrong and slipped to the side.
A White Zetsu surfaced from the ground. "Did you notice? Most of the Hyuga on duty were just moved from their posts. Even stranger, the marker on Hayato has vanished."
Tobi scratched his head, a look of confusion on his face.
Danzo, standing beside him, interjected, "Our operation may have been discovered. Any further hesitation will lead to complete failure."
Tobi hesitated for a moment. "What do you think? We still haven't found a way to get to the moon."
Danzo replied coldly, "Two of our reconnaissance Zetsu have already disappeared. That's proof enough that we've been exposed. The mass movement of the guards confirms their suspicion. If we don't want the plan to fail, we must act now."
Tobi sighed and threw up his hands. "Ah, this is all too troublesome. I'd rather just enjoy my food."
Danzo, however, had already made up his mind. Since the situation had developed this way, he might as well take matters into his own hands and cause some trouble for Konoha.
"Fine," Tobi said, his eye glinting with a complex light before his demeanor fell silent. "At least it will weaken Konoha's strength." At that moment, he relinquished control to the other presence within him.
"Take me to Kaito. Immediately."