THE FIVE ELEMENTS
The Five Elements based on Chinese mythology:
... fire > metal > wood > earth > water > fire ... (cycle)
The Five Elements based on Japanese mythology:
... fire > wind > sky/heaven > earth > water > fire ... (cycle)
The Five Elements of Naruto:
... fire > wind > lightning > earth > water > fire ... (cycle)
The three are correlated to I Ching. All are the same except for the following:
-- wood = wind -- metal = sky/heaven = lightning
Based on the Chinese myth, the elements fire and metal are associated with yang; the elements water, wood and earth are associated with yin.
The Hyugas are yet to show any elemental affinity, if at all. Note, however, that the Hyuga divination field is similar to the bagua, the ultimate device in Chinese geomancy (feng shui, literally wind and water). The elements wind and water are believed to direct qi (energy). wind carries energy, representing the principle of change and transformation; water withholds energy, representing stability and inner strength.
The principle of change of the wind may be portrayed by Neji; the principle of inner strength may be portrayed by Hinata. Although unofficial, one arc seems to point that Hinata may be a water user (or maybe not -- Personally, I don't think the animators would put up a story showing a side of any character different from what Kishimoto intended them to be).
The element left out is earth, which I shall put as simply a principle of yin which should be balanced by the yang principle of heaven. The element of lightning used by Sasuke is also synonymous with the element of sky/heaven in Japanese myth.
Some points:
(1) During the chuunin exams at the Forest of Death, Team 7 was given the scroll of heaven. The scroll given to team 8 wasn't shown (or I may have overlooked it) but it should have been the scroll of earth.
(2) Orochimaru gave Sasuke the Seal of Heaven. Kimimaro has the Seal of earth (this isn't to say that Kimimaro is yin. This only shows that Sasuke, so far, is consistent with the characteristics of yang)
