Thousands of years ago a the world was ruled by the iron fists of demons. However, one demon, Shendu was betrayed by his subjects and cast in the form of a statue while his talismans, from which he drew his strength, was scattered to the four corners of the globe. He has waited long, losing patience as the years ticked by, until finally he was stumbled upon by the successful crime lord Valmont.

Being knowledgeable in humanity's weaknesses, Shendu can easily spot out Valmont's selfishness and uses this to manipulate him. He finds great pleasure in taunting Valmont and making him feel worthless, because he knows Valmont cares too much for his promised treasure (and his life) to stand up for himself. Shendu has the impression of being arrogant, but maybe it is because he too feels inferior. To a pitiful human such as Valmont, he is the ultimate power. But in the eyes of his demon brethren he is lower than the dirt we spit on.

As the demon of fire, Shendu has the ability to breathe flame and such. He also has complete control of the Shadowkhan, an endless array of shadow-like ninjas that are intensly skillful fighters and equiped in weaponry such as blades. So far it has not been revealed if his demon brethren have the ability to summon the Shadowkhan. Maybe it was a bonus Shendu had acquired because of the talismans' magic, which he'd created.