Brave boy's ninja spirit against disease

Rotorua boy Elliott Crimp tells people he has "ninjacoccal" disease because the ninjas got into his blood to beat him up from the inside.

The 4-year-old was going to paint a ninja yesterday, but it turned into a bit of a red blob so he did an abstract painting with handprints.

Elliott's work, touched up by artist Marcus White, will be auctioned at a gala next Thursday to raise money for Kidz First Children's Hospital in Auckland where he's lived for the past seven months.

He's celebrated Christmas, his fourth birthday and Easter in hospital.

Since contracting meningococcal B at the end of September, the Rotorua boy has endured more than 60 operations and has lost two fingers, part of his right foot, areas around his knees and all his toes.

It all started with a stomach ache.

It was September 26 and they had just eaten dinner - she thought he was complaining to get out of going to bed. But he quickly got sicker and started vomiting. The next morning, his mother, Kushla, called an ambulance because Elliott had nothing left to throw up and couldn't keep water down.

When the paramedics arrived he had a temperature of 40.9C and not long after he got to hospital, a rash broke out over his torso.

Doctors knew straight away it was meningococcal B.

Elliot's come a long way since then and is now able to put pressure on his feet so can walk again, something his parents feared might never happen.

And Elliott doesn't let his health woes bring him down. Yesterday, while he was painting he screamed and giggled as he covered every bit of exposed skin with as much paint as possible.