Aloha, mes amigos!

(I don't speak Spanish)

Anyway, my muse got drunk and just wouldn't shut up, so here it is: my third fanfic! For more, just go down to the AN at the bottom. In the meantime, enjoy the show!

Prologue

The setting sun beat down on a small alley as a young boy ran through, tears pouring down his face. Behind him, a mob followed, faces twisted into contortions of hatred. Sticks and rocks were thrown at the young blond, and he flinched as he was pelted with the objects, but he kept running.

"Get the brat!"

"Kill the demon!"

"Get him now!"

Why? What have I ever done to them? Ignorant of the answers to his questions the young blond ran on. As night fell, though, he grew tired, and rounded a corner to find-

A dead end.

Naruto glanced around frantically as he searched for an escape route. Up? No, the roof was too high and there were no ledges to climb up on. Back where he had come from? Familiar shouts reached his ears. No, he couldn't go back. Before he could consider anything else, though, the men who were chasing him came around the corner and spotted him.

"GET HIM NOW!"

As the mob rounded on him, faces flickering in the pale moonlight, Naruto felt himself frozen on the spot as a sick terror descended upon him. Horrified, he could only stare as the mob came rushing at him. He tensed, preparing for the worst.

And it came.

Screaming soundlessly, Naruto's body contorted as he was kicked in the side. He twisted and threw up on the ground only to catch a yelp as the knee of one of his assailants caught him in the gut. Mentally and physically paralyzed, he could only watch and take it as the villagers took out their hatred and insanity on the boy in front of them. Pain wracked his body, muffling the sobs that came between attacks. He vomited: black bile rushed up his throat as another villager came up to him and kicked him in the groin. He screamed again as he saw a knife coming towards him, he was gonna die, he was gonna die, -

He blinked. The pain never came.

In front of him, calmly standing and holding one of the villagers at bay, was a man, a ninja by the headband he wore and an ANBU by the Inu (Dog) mask on his face. From his position behind the man, Naruto saw silver-white hair sticking up from beneath the mask.

"ENOUGH! What is going on here?"

The villagers froze. That voice. I-it couldn't be! But, there he was: Hiruzen Sarutobi, Sandaime Hokage of Konoha, standing right there before them. And he was pissed.

Several villagers fainted with damp spots over their crotches.

"Kakashi," Sarutobi began quietly, not trusting himself to reveal his emotions, "You will take young Naruto here to the hospital and make sure he is taken care of." The ANBU nodded in affirmative and leapt away.

"As for you," the Hokage spat as the villagers quaked in their boots, "I expected better of you. That child is a hero, and he carries a weight greater than you will ever know! I am disgusted."

"B-but Hokage-sama! H-he is just a demon, after all-" The man was cut off with a kunai to the shoulder. He collapsed, bleeding onto the ground.

"ANBU!" Sarutobi snapped. Two masked shapes immediately appeared behind him. "Take them to Ibiki." The faces of the villagers immediately paled.

"Hai," the two ninja said together. The Hokage only watched, disgusted as he watched the two ninja speed off. Konoha, have you really fallen so far? What would Minato say? He sighed; his old age was certainly catching up to him. One thing was certain, though: he had to make sure Naruto was all right.

o-o-o-o-o-o

Shapes flashed before Naruto's eyes as he and the ANBU sped off towards Konoha hospital. Dark shadows drifted across the backs of his eyelids as he drifted in and out of consciousness. Seeing the light of the building, Kakashi immediately sped up and burst into the lobby.

"Quick! He needs medical attention!" the ANBU said as he proffered the child to a nurse. She walked over, but recoiled when she saw Naruto.

"Are you crazy? That's the demon child. I could never-" She was cut off as Kakashi slammed her against the wall, holding Naruto in his other hand.

"Enough," Kakashi began, and the sound chilled the blood of all those around him. "This child has just been beaten within an inch of his life and requires healing. You will be supervised at all times to assure that there is no negligence on your part. If you do anything to sabotage his health, I will kill you. Do you understand me?" With that, he released her, leaving her to splutter intensively as she hit the floor.

"H-hai ANBU-san." With one last terrified glance at the ninja and the boy, she grabbed Naruto and ran off toward a room to get the boy to a futon. Kakashi sighed in relief; it was a good thing she was easily frightened. He didn't want to do anything he might later regret. He closed his eyes, and melted into the shadows, moving calmly towards Naruto's room. Once there, he found the boy sleeping soundly, though his body was occasionally wracked by coughs of blood. With a start, he realized he wasn't the only one in the room.

"H-hokage-sama!"

"Hello Kakashi." The Hokage's face turned grave as he turned toward his subordinate, "Thank you for getting him here so quickly. If we had waited-," he paused, and let the implications hang in the air. Kakashi felt sick to his stomach. How could anyone be so horrible? He hadn't realized he'd asked that out loud until the Hokage answered him.

"I do not know, Kakashi," the Sandaime said as he turned to peer out the window. He sighed. "These people hold nothing but fear and hatred in their hearts when there should be hope and respect. I fear for this village not for its safety, but for its heart. Who are we when we attack a young child and leave him for death?" Sarutobi looked up at the stars. You would be ashamed of me, Minato. He turned and a soft groan came from the bed. Smiling, the Hokage moved toward the young boy.

"Mmmmmm? Wherem I?"

Sarutobi chuckled; the boy was certainly amusing in his antics. Letting his eyes turn warm, he looked down at the blond lying in front of him. "It's all right Naruto," he began soothingly. "There were some bad people, but they're gone now. You're safe."

"Really?" Naruto's eyes closed again and he turned over and hugged his pillow.

"Thanks ojii-san."

The Hokage smiled, and left the room, flanked by Kakashi. An ANBU would be placed outside the room tonight to guard against intruders. The door was closed quietly, and the two shinobi left, neither noticing the wisps of red chakra that were gathering around the boy.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Naruto awoke in what appeared to be some kind of sewer. Red light glittered eerily on the surface of the water, dancing alluringly like a will-o-wisp. The trickling of water echoed throughout the hallway as Naruto trudged forward, neither knowing nor caring where he was. He walked, and he came upon a large room with a giant cage in front of him. The bars were gold and on the front was a paper with the kanji fuuin (Seal). A menacing growl came from beyond the bars and a malevolent aura began to seep out. The boy stiffened, whatever this was, he needed to get away from it. Turning away, he was frozen in place as the feeling washed over him, and he collapsed to the ground.

"So you are my container, boy," a voice said. Naruto said nothing, curling up in a ball as a clawed hand reached out to grab him. He was taken up and raised until he saw two red eyes staring back at him-

And he knew fear.

"It would appear that you have been attacked." The voice sounded amused. "However, I cannot be seen with a weak container. Therefore, we must make some… adjustments." A single claw reached out and touched the boy's forehead. The instant the claw touched him, a rush of energy rocketed into Naruto. It felt like he was burning, like he was freezing, like he was being ripped apart- and it stopped.

"Heh, it looks like you do have some fight in you. I haven't done anything like that for a thousand years." The voice stopped, sounding almost wistful. "Feh, as if it matters. Now get out." The clawed hand flung the boy forward and he was rushing toward the wall, he was gonna crash, he was gonna-

o-o-o-o-o-o

Crickets sounded throughout the night, as the moonlight peered through a window to shine on the face of one young blond. Suddenly, without warning, a wisp of red energy drifted across the windowsill.

And then all hell broke lose.

Streams of the red chakra began rushing out of Naruto, filling the room with their power. Throughout the chaos, one voice sounded, ancient and powerful.

"Kaji."

A flame broke out over the body, and the boy was wrapped in a dancing fire, though no burns appeared on his body.

"Mizu."

A light cloak of mist descended upon the boy and was absorbed into his skin, causing him to shiver uncontrollably.

"Tsuchi."

A whirlwind of sand drifted in from the outside, as the soil drifted around the boy and settled onto his skin before disappearing in a flash.

"Kaze."

A torrent of winds blew through the window and the boy was lifted up into the air before being slammed back down on the ground.

"Raikou."

A jolt of lightning struck from the ceiling onto the boy's chest as he was wracked by uncontrollable spasms while streams of electricity danced their way across his torso.

Hearing the noise, the guard immediately rushed in, only to see all action immediately stop. Seeing the boy on the floor amidst the wreckage, the ninja wasted no time. "Call the Hokage!" he shouted, and immediately rushed off to find a nurse. Unknown to him, a light red aura surrounded the blond before vanishing, giving the small boy new breath as his chest heaved. He opened his eyes; they were still a shocking blue, but beyond that raged the destructive inferno, the deepest seas, the tallest mountains, the largest hurricanes, and the most destructive storms.

And with a final cough, Uzumaki Naruto closed his eyes and slept.

o-o-o-o-o-o

Deep in its cave, a chuckle rang out.

"Uzumaki Naruto. You would do well to amuse me…" Deep laughter rang out through the cave as five misty forms suddenly coalesced on the floor before the cage.

"And amuse me you shall."

o-o-o-o-o-o

AN: Hey guys, and welcome to my third fanfic! Anyways, welcome to Naruto of the Five Elements; I hope you enjoy it. Finally, I am obligated to thank my new beta, LonelyStalker, yadda yadda yadda-

LonelyStalker: Excuse me?

Sage of Seals: Uh, H-hey, man! Uh, shouldn't you be doing that French homework? Eh-heh…

LS: Dammit, tell them about the other stories.

SoS: Hey, all right… He's also helping me on my other stories A Memory Long Lost and The Curse of Immortality. So, thanks man.

LS: (Leaves)

SoS: Whew, that was close… Anyway, don't forget to review! Just a one-word "Nice" or "Good job" are welcome. And don't hesitate to tell me what I'm doing wrong/right!

SoS, out!