Team: The Hand

The Hand

Headquarters: Valley of Mercy and Wrath
First Appearance: Daredevil #174 September 1981

The Hand is a ninja clan and the current iteration of a pseudo-religious cabal worshiping the demon known as the Beast. The clan is made up of several different factions which are each led by a faction leader and overseen by a single supreme leader or jonin. Rank and file individual members of the clan are known as genin. Originally formed as a secret society by Kagenobu Yoshioka in 1588 and dedicated to Japanese nationalism, the group was infiltrated and corrupted by outside forces: The Sickly Ones (primordial entities responsible for the knowledge and worship of the Beast on earth), the Five (the Sickly Ones' acolytes), and the Snakeroot ninja clan (an older iteration of the Beast's cabal). The Chaste, a group of mystical warriors, fought the spread of the Beast and its evil.