Merge:Hand

The Hand is a group of fictional supervillains in the Marvel Comics universe. The Hand first appeared in Daredevil volume 1 #168 (January, 1981) and were created by writer/artist Frank Miller. They are marked by their red costumes.

The Hand is a cult of evil mystical ninjas who are heavily involved in organized crime and mercenary activities such as assassination plots. The Hand covets power above all other objectives. They are primarily based in Japan, but operate internationally. They were founded in the 16th century, and soon became servants of the primordial demon known only as the Beast.

Members of the Hand are practitioners of powerful occult magic and can murder a person and bring that person back to life as a servant of the Hand. Only Elektra, Psylocke and Wolverine are known to have reversed this programming. Wolverine was brainwashed in a combined operation by the Hand and Hydra.

History
The story begins 800 years ago, in feudal Japan. Seeking autonomy from the oppressive class system of the time, a few citizens fled into the mountainous regions of Iga and Kōga. There they developed ninjitsu, a stealthy martial art perhaps inspired by Sun Tzu's The Art of War. Over a period of centuries, they refined their art in secluded camps. Students trained and practiced the art from birth, playing children's games designed to impart expertise in unarmed combat, swordplay, weaponry, camouflage, escape and evasion. Ninjitsu was also designed to encourage spiritual growth by pushing oneself physically and mentally beyond normal human limits. The ninja were expert in espionage and assassination, and offered their specialised services to samurai warlords and others who could afford them.

Masters of every form of subterfuge, the ninja were the most efficient and deadly warriors on the face of the Earth and became feared throughout Japan. Hearsay gave rise to the myth that ninja were the spawn of the Tengu, and that their divinity gave them extraordinary abilities. These myths were likely spread by the ninja themselves.

The most evil and devious of all these ninja was most certainly a faction called the Hand. Unlike the other factions, the Hand did not work as mercenaries, but sought power themselves. The Hand sought dominance over all others, worked for no one but themselves, and sought to eliminate their enemies. From the very beginning, the Hand employed Dark magic, imparted unto them by their demonic master, The Beast. One of these black spells causes a Hand ninja's lifeless body to return to dust and prevent another from gazing upon his countenance.

The Hand ninja survive to this day, still seeking power in various forms, and using their lethal skills and brutal methods. The Hand's most dangerous adversary is the Chaste, a band of warriors once led by Stick, the late, blind martial arts master. Stick once trained a young blind boy named Matt Murdock, who grew to become the costumed crime-fighter Daredevil. Another of his former pupils, Elektra Natchios, has also been involved in the Hand. She infiltrated the Hand, determined to prove herself to Stick. Instead, the ninja tricked her into killing one of her former sensei. Elektra served the Hand for a time. When their ways corrupted her soul, she fled Japan back to America.

Eventually, the Hand sought to wipe out Stick and the good warriors of the Chaste altogether. Stick thwarted an assassination attempt by four Hand operatives; he then summoned the other members of his order to New York City. With the assistance of his clan, Stick defeated Kirigi, the Hand's most lethal ninja at the time. The Hand regrouped and attacked Stick and his band of warriors that now included Daredevil and his current lover, Black Widow. The Hand had almost overpowered the small band of warriors, when Stick and Shaft resorted to an ancient technique that drained the life force from all ninja present. Unfortunately, the technique resulted in the explosion of Stick and his comrade as a result of the excess energy they had absorbed. The Hand considered the destruction of their arch-nemesis and leader of their enemy a victory and turned their attention to other schemes.

Years later, the Hand again turned its attention to the leaderless Chaste, once again attempting to destroy them, this time to prevent the Chaste's members from locating the new-born child that would bear Stick's reincarnated soul. The Hand severely crippled Stick's soldiers, reducing their number to a handful of warriors. The few remaining traveled to New York, seeking the assistance of Daredevil. Reluctantly, the Man Without Fear aided his former mentor's disciples, returning with them to Japan. Once there, The Hand attacked the Chaste and Daredevil relentlessly. Fighting alongside Daredevil, the Chaste barely managed to escape and safeguard their master's reincarnated spirit.

The Hand has also frequently fought with Wolverine and come into conflict with superheroes such as Spider-Man, the Avengers, and the X-Men.

The Hand is currently under the leadership of Elektra.

Appearances in other media
In the Elektra film (2005), the Hand is featured as the villain group. It is led by Master Roshi and features some of its deadly members including Tattoo, Typhoid, Stone, and Roshi's own son, Kirigi.

In the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics, cartoons, and movies, there is a secret Ninja clan called The Foot, an obvious parody of The Hand.

In X-Men vs. Street Fighter, Cammy is propositioned by The Hand, only to be rescued by Psylocke. Though obviously non-canonical, it is theorized that Capcom still had no idea of what to do with the Cammy character when this ending was made.