There were indeed quite a few promising youngsters this year.
Gekkō Raito's perception spread in an instant, like an invisible net gently sweeping over each youngster's body, probing their chakra fluctuations.
One glance was all it took. Whether they were true talents or mere pretenders, none could hide from him.
In the Snow Shinobi Village's formation, a pale-faced boy caught his attention. A bone-piercing chill surrounded the boy, and his chakra reserves were considerable too, reaching the standard of a Kirigakure chunin.
The sensation resembled Ice Release, but closer inspection revealed slight differences.
Raito narrowed his eyes in understanding.
So that's it!
The Land of Snow's unique environment, blanketed in snow year-round, probably caused this kid's chakra to mutate. He actually evolved the ability to control temperature directly!
His gaze shifted. There was another oddity among Hoshigakure's team: a little boy with black cloth wrapped around his eyes, seemingly blind.
Yet the unique purple chakra within him actually carried a faint trace of the Ten-Tails' presence. It reminded Raito of the meteorite enshrined in Hoshigakure.
That meteorite contained a faint amount of Ten-Tails chakra. The Star Ninja trained by absorbing its radiation, and though the side effects were severe, it did indeed grant them power.
And this blind kid was actually perfectly compatible with that violent chakra.
The vast Shinobi World truly held all manner of wonders.
This must have been what people called a chosen one.
His perfect compatibility with this power meant he would not be short-lived like his predecessors. This boy's potential merited special attention.
As for the other minor ninja villages, despite their numbers, these were the only two who truly caught his eye. The rest would struggle even to meet the average standard for genin from the Five Great Shinobi Villages. They were purely here