The visual model for Shishio is Aonuma Shizuma of "The Inugamis" (1976); Watsuki saw this film as a child and took influences from it. When it was decided that Shishio would be burned on much of his body, Watsuki thought of a rubber mask similar to the one that Shizuma has. Watsuki decided against this idea since he felt it would be difficult to realistically convey rubber in black and white, he felt he could not portray "the sheer agony" of Shishio's condition, and it would be more difficult for Watsuki to draw Shishio's expressions. Ultimately Watsuki decided to have Shishio wear bandages. Since Watsuki felt having the character simply wrapped in bandages would not "be exciting," the bandages on Shishio's face became crisscrossed, making what Watsuki describes as "weird headgear," and otherwise "fancied" the design. Watsuki wanted Shishio to be "cool, like Kibagami," so Watsuki added a "sexy companion," a pipe, a folding screen, and an umbrella. Shishio's "Homura Dama" technique is original to the series, while the "Guren Kaina" is, in Watsuki's words, "pretty much a rip of "Daibaku Satsu," a move by the "Shura" Sogetsu Kazama character in "Samurai Shodown IV" ("Samurai Spirits: Amakusa's Descent", "TenSamu").