Marshadow (M20)

Marshadow (Japanese: マーシャドー Marshadow) is a major character who appeared in I Choose You!. Marshadow is said to be a guide from the shadows who leads those chosen by to be the Rainbow Hero. If the Rainbow Wing given to the chosen person loses its color, Marshadow is tasked with sealing the Rainbow Wing away.

History
Marshadow was first seen emerging from the shadow of an as it watched, Verity, and Sorrel rest in a cave to avoid an intense rainstorm.

After his defeat at the hands of Cross, Ash angrily lashed out at his friends and ran off to a forest to sulk. His frustration caused the Rainbow Wing to lose its color. Marshadow appeared and used its powers to put Ash to sleep, trapping him in a dream world where Pokémon do not exist and he went to school instead of traveling. Though Ash did not remember what Pokémon are in this world, his bond with allowed him to regain his memories and wake up. Startled by the experience, Ash apologized to Pikachu for his earlier behavior, causing the Rainbow Wing to revert to its normal state.

After meeting back up with his friends, Ash informed Verity and Sorrel about the strange dream. When Ash wondered what caused the dream to happen, Marshadow emerged from its shadow, only to quickly hide back inside when it was spotted by Pikachu. Pikachu, attempting to get Marshadow to reveal itself, attacked the tree Ash was sitting by. The attempt only caused a group of wild to appear and attack the group in anger.

Upon arriving at the Raizen Mountains, Ash and his friends traveled to Mount Tensei to meet with Ho-Oh. Shortly after arriving, the group was attacked by Cross, who challenged Ash to a battle for possession of the Rainbow Wing. At this point, Marshadow fully revealed itself to everyone in order to observe the battle. When the battle ended in Ash's victory, Cross stole the Rainbow Wing anyway and tried to summon Ho-Oh himself. Due to the wickedness in his heart, the Rainbow Wing immediately lost its color, causing the skies to turn black once Cross placed the wing on the Rainbow Rock.

Angered by this, Marshadow attacked Cross and tried to seal the Rainbow Wing away, only to become corrupted by the evil tainting it. Cross tried to take the Rainbow Wing back by force, but Marshadow used its powers to take control of Cross's. It then had Lycanroc attack its Trainer. Marshadow then took control of the other Pokémon living in the area and used them to form a small army to attack everyone.

As the others battled Marshadow's army, Ash confronted Marshadow in an attempt to take back the Rainbow Wing and cleanse it of the evil tainting it. Ash and Pikachu battled Marshadow, but it proved to be too powerful and defeated them, though it is left exhausted afterwards. Marshadow's army then proceeded to fire a simultaneous attack on Ash and Pikachu. Ash sacrificed himself by forcing Pikachu to return to its Poké Ball in order to take the full force of the attack alone. The attack caused Ash's body to disappear, and the Rainbow Wing vanished soon after. Pikachu, left in tears from Ash's sacrifice, released an extremely powerful, sending Marshadow and its army flying. The attack turned the sky back to normal and released Marshadow and its army from the Rainbow Wing's corruption.

After Ash's body was restored, he received a new Rainbow Wing. With the Rainbow Rock back to normal, Marshadow proceeded to leave. After Ash finished his battle with Ho-Oh, Marshadow watched Bonji make a speech about potential future Rainbow Heroes.

Moves used

 * Marshadow also knows, as it was able to use . However, it was never seen using it.

Pokémon
While controlled by the tainted Rainbow Wing, Marshadow showed the ability to corrupt other Pokémon and take control of them. Whether or not it can do this under normal circumstances is unknown.

In the I Choose You! manga
Marshadow appears in , the adaptation of the twentieth Pokémon movie. It was first seen emerging from an 's shadow unnoticed while, Verity, and Sorrel were resting up in a cave from a rainstorm.

Later, Marshadow appeared in Ash's shadow when Ash was upset at his defeat at the hands of Cross. It put Ash to sleep using its powers, trapping him in a dream world where Pokémon do not exist and he went to school instead of traveling. While Ash initially didn't remember what Pokémon were, his bond with Pikachu helped him regain his memories and he woke up. When Marshadow emerged from a tree, Ash and his friends noticed it and Pikachu used an Electric attack on Marshadow but ended up hitting the tree instead, angering a group of.

Upon Ash's and his friends' arrival to the Raizen Mountains and then to Mount Tensei, the group was attacked by Cross who challenged Ash for the Rainbow Wing. Marshadow then appeared from Ash's shadow and jumped up onto a rocky area to watch the battle. After Ash won, Cross took the Rainbow Wing by force and placed it on the rainbow rock. Since the Rainbow Wing was touched by a wicked soul, it lost its color. Marshadow then grabbed the tainted Rainbow Wing and surrounded itself in a black aura. As such, Marshadow became corrupted by the evil tainting it. It then took control of Cross's and the wild Pokémon on the mountain.

In an attempt to take back the Rainbow Wing, Ash battled Marshadow. During the battle, Marshadow changed into its Zenith form. Pikachu was no match for Marshadow and he ended up being defeated by it, although Marshadow got exhausted in the process and changed back into its normal form. Marshadow's army then surrounded Ash and Pikachu and fired a combined attack on the two. This caused Ash to disappear since he took the force of the attack alone and the tainted Rainbow Wing to disappear as well. This saddened Pikachu to the point that he released an Electric attack on the wild Pokémon, freeing them and Marshadow from the evil tainting them.

After Ash's body was restored, a new Rainbow Wing was formed in his hand. He then placed the Rainbow Wing on the rainbow rock. Marshadow watched as to how the rainbow was forming, signaling 's arrival. Marshadow then took its leave after everything was back to normal. After Ash had a battle with Ho-Oh, it stood behind Bonji when he waved goodbye to Ash.

In Pocket Monsters the Movie: I Choose You! Remix
Marshadow stars in ICYR2, a chapter taking place before the events of I Choose You!. In this, Marshadow appears in the Alola region, where it saved a young boy named from a gang of s lead by Borosue. As thanks, Ken takes Marshadow to a dojo previously owned by his late grandfather. Ken begs Marshadow to protect the dojo from Borosue and his gang, as they aim on tearing it down to erect a statue of Borosue in its place. When Marshadow rejects the offer, Ken apologizes for trying to push away his responsibility onto it.

After spending the night with Ken and the Pokémon living at the dojo, Marshadow gets up and runs off to the hideout of Borosue and his gang, where it challenges them to a battle. When Ken arrives at the hideout, he finds that Marshadow managed to defeat the Grunts and all of their Pokémon. Borosue, noting that fighting over a hundred Pokémon would leave it exhausted, sends out a to attack Marshadow. The tired Gloomdweller Pokémon is nearly defeated, but Ken steps in to defend it. Marshadow, impressed by Ken's courage despite knowing he has no chance of victory, hands Ken a Marshadium Z to put in the Hero's Ring he received from his grandfather. With the Z-Crystal, Ken has Marshadow activate, easily defeating Borosue's Gyarados.

The next day, Ken thanks Marshadow for helping him become more courageous. As Marshadow leaves, Ken promises to get stronger and become a Trainer strong enough to protect the dojo.

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