Shadow

Shadow (影, Kage) are mysterious creatures that inhabit Hitogashima. Their goal is to revive their "Mother", Haine.

Appearance
Shadow's can take the appearance of any human once they scan him. When not copying a human, they can take a humanoid shadow form. When facing a shadow human, their true form is the flat shadow on the ground.

Personality
They dislike being stepped on, so they will avoid anything that tries to step on them.

Power & Abilities
The shadows can copy scan and copy any humans along with their memories, allowing the shadow to perfectly replace them. Their true form is the flat shadow on the ground, while the human is just a collected flesh, which can't be killed and can be regenerated. The true form is vulnerable by physical objects and can be killed by normal weapons. To scan a full human requires more energy. And once they create the flash, the shadows are unable to move for a few seconds, leaving them vulnerable for attacks. If the flat shadow is pierced three times at the same time, the shadow becomes unable to move both her true form and 3D flesh body.

Hizuru's sister hypothesis, the Shadows scan humans with light and absorb their information. The shadows survive by eating human data, however, to actually sustain themselves requires them to consume the subject completely, which is done with a flash and leaves black stains behind, rather than just scanning them. In order to consume a living subject, that subject generally has to be dead, though Haine can consume people directly by touching them with a black mud which is created through a specific ritual.

Objects can be scanned and consumed from a distance, but that exact distance is unknown and generally only within a few feet. Scanning can usually be done at a bigger distance than consuming. Fluids can be scanned and consumed so long as they are within some kind of container. That container doesn't need to be perfectly air tight. How big of an opening there can be is unknown.

The shadows are capable of two types of copying: transformation and childbirth. When transforming, they replicate something with their body. While with childbirth, they split off part of their body to create a new shadow. Haine can give childbirth many times, but the children she makes can only give birth to one human shadow, and those grand-children cannot give birth, however, all shadows can transform repeatedly. When a shadow is created from a person during childbirth, they human needs to be dead within a week or the shadows will turn into mud and vanish. Generally speaking, a shadow can't exist without being in the form of a human. When a shadow is born, this usually needs to be the human who was scanned to birth them. It doesn't seem as though they can simply transform into someone new to survive past a week if the human is still alive.

Shadows can also scan and recreate objects. These objects can only exist within 50 meters of the shadow that spawned them. Shadows have a limited amount of data they can hold, though this limit is much greater for Haine. Once at this limit, they must erase the data of existing objects to make room for more if they wish to store that data. Complex machinery generally can't function without the original being erased, however, if the original is erased and the data of it is brought back in time, both can function at the same time.

Haine in particular has some control over time through the use of her eye, until she loses it. Her control over time generally functions by allowing her to see into the future and predict precisely how things will happen and then choose through her actions which timeline she prefers. After seeing a particular timeline she is able to use the data from that timeline in different timelines. She also seemingly has the ability to transfer this somewhat to others. When creating Ryunosuke, she accidently did so in such a way that he always knows what is going to happen two seconds in the future. She explains it as misplacing him in time. Essentially, he is experiencing reality at one point in time, but his actions occur two seconds before that point. Another way to understand it is that the data of his experiences is being written at the wrong period of time.

It does seem like there is a limit to this power. Once data of a potential future timeline is brought back, there is a delay before data can be brought back again. When Shinpei is using this power, this manifests as him having to survive for a while before he can go back in time. For most of the show, the power over time is in the control of Shinpei as he has Haine's eye.

Known Shadows
Some shadows only appeared during certain loops due to unique actions.

Shadow Mio Kofune: At night, Shadow Mio stares at Kofune's house and later leaves. The next day, in the forest near the shrine, Shadow Mio shoots and injures Hizuru. Real Mio Kofune and Shinpei Ajiro hear the gunshot and follow it and find Hizuru. Mio heads to look for help, while Hizuru attempts to warn Shinpei, but Shadow Mio shoots her in the head. Shadow Mio had captured Mio and then kills both Mio and Shinpei.
 * -| 1st Loop =

Shadow Tetsu Totsumura: Tetsu enters the dinner and asks for the usual. Mio takes his order, but wonders why he didn't came this morning for breakfast. Tetsu explains that all Kobayakawa family had vanished. In the morning, their Koba Mart wasn't open, so their neighbour, Shiomi's wife, peeked in their house and it was all empty. Tetsu believes they may had a debt and fled during the night.

Shadow Mio Kofune & Tetsu Totsumura: Tetsu Totsumura sees Shadow Mio standing in front of Kofune's house. Shadow Mio then kills him, stabbing him multiple times with a kitchen knife. She then flashes and creates another Shadow, which transforms into Tetsu. Shadow Tetsu touches the dead Tetsu, causing another flash and disentigrading his body. Shadow Mio informs Shadow Tetsu that he is now Tetsu Totsumura, the police officer. Assuming his role, Mio then asks him to give her his gun, causing Tetsu to realize she still haven't killed the real Mio and taken her place. Mio explains her morning attempt failed and it would be easier to kill her if she sends her to the hospital. Taking the gun, Shadow Mio comments that she can't go in and kill her now or everyone will hear the gunshot and will be just scouting for today. In that moment, Shinpei's phone vibrates, Mio hears it, find Shinpei and stabs him in the neck. As he bleeds out, Tetsu wonders if Mio will copy him, but she starts to explain that Shinpei is already something, but he isn't able to hear the rest.
 * -| 2nd Loop =

Shadow Shiori Kobayakawa: Shinpei and Shiomi enter the Kobayakawas house as their shop is closed. Shinpei goes on the second floor, where he encounters Shadow Shiori who asks him why he asked her yesterday if she had seem a girl like her. She wonders why is he starring at her and if there is something wrong with her. Shinpei then realizes that Shiori is a shadow and she was at the funeral. As Shiori creates a shadow, he realizes that the flash at the funeral already afflicted with him a shadow sickness. Shiomi then comes and Shiori decides to leave.
 * -| 3rd Loop =

Shadow Ushio Kofune: Check main article Ushio Kofune.

Shadow Mio Kofune: At the stairs towards the shrine, Shadow Mio stands and kills people. She sees Shinpei coming and grabs him and throws him, stating that she heard he recorded her, but that wouldn't be possible, unless he knew she was coming. Mio asks if the traitor told him, but as the plan is almost complete, she can't let any interference. Shadow Shinpei appears and obtains Shinpei's current memories. Mio then tries to kill Shinpei, but shadow Shinpei stops her, stating they need to think a bit more and if they kill him, he can just loop again. Shadow Shinpei tells Mio to take his phone and to send others to get Ushio. Shinpei wishes to stop him, but Mio breaks his arm, stating he is struggling pointlessly as Mother will soon wake up. As Shinpei keeps struggling, Mio wonders if she should break his leg too, but in that moment, Hizuru appears and shoots her in the head. Mio retreats in her shadow and regenerates. In her shadow she slides behind Hizuru and comes out attempting to stab Hizuru, however, Hizuru dodges and points the gun at Mio's shadow on the ground and shoots it. Mio is surprised she managed to dodge that and then dies from the gunshot.

Shadow Shinpei Ajiro: At the stairs towards the shrine, after Shadow Mio captures Shinpei, shadow Shinpei appears and wonders how many times has Shinpei died, and creates a flash, obtaining current Shinpei memories. Mio then tries to kill Shinpei, but shadow Shinpei stops her, stating they need to think a bit more and if they kill him, he can just loop again. Shadow Shinpei states that Shinpei can't control it on will, but if he keeps returning to 22nd, he will one day become a hindrance. Shadow Shinpei tells Mio to take his phone and to send others to get Ushio. He then proceeds towards the shrine. At the shrine, he captures Ushio and asks her what she was thinking, as she can't trade places with someone who just had a funeral and guesses she had no intention of switching. Ushio awakens and tries to get free from Shadow Shinpei, but tells her she is a shadow like them as a human can't heal a broken arm that fast.

Shadow Sou Hishigata: At the shrine, after the shadows started killing the humans there, Shadow Sou attempts to kill Mio with an axe, but Sou uses his body to protect her and dies. Shadow Sou attempts to kill her again, but now Hizuru shoots and blasts his hands.

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.

Shadow Mio Kofune: Shadow Mio copies Alain Kofune and creates Shadow Alain, but learns that he also doesn't know where Ushio is.
 * -| 4th Loop =

After learning that Shiori was killed, Mio decides to eliminate Shinpei. Instead of staying in front of the house, she enters and gets to his room. She attempts to stab him, but Ushio protects him and takes the hit. Mio then stabs her shadow and wounds her. Shinpei opens the curtain and challenges Mio, but she wonders why Ushio protected him. Ushio tells her its because she loves him. Getting angry, Mio starts saying that she died and attempts to kill Shinpei, but Ginjiro blows her head through the window and Shinpei then stabs her shadow. As she died, she tells Shinpei that she also loves him.

Shadow Asako, Tetsuo and Shiori Kobayakawa Family: At the funeral, Asako recognizes Hizuru and tells her that Ushio saved her daughter, Shiori, from drowning. She proceeds to cry about the tragedy, but Hizuru sees that the Kobayawa family are all shadows.

Shinpei tells Shiori that what she saw is a shadow and if she sees her again, she must run. A bit later Asako approaches Shinpei and asks him what he means. Seeing they are shadows, Shinpei explains its something he heard from Mio's grandmother when they were kids.

Hizuru speculated that Shadow Shiori had drowned Shiori and erased her in the sea, and then acted as she is the one drowning. As she was saved and returned home, she killed and copied Shiori's parents.

In the evening, Hizuru visits the Kobayakawa and Asako lets her in as Shiori orders her to. Once inside, Hizuru takes out a hammer and smashes Asako's head. Tetsuo attacks her, but she smashes his head as well. Asako stands up and attacks, but Shiori smashes her shadow and kills her. Shiori then acts as a child, standing behind Hizuru and wondering why. Hizuru quickly turns and smashes Shiori's shadow, but Shiori manages to survive and moves away. She then attacks Hizuru and starts strangling her. She comments that she is dangerous as she knows how the kill shadows. However, she wonders if she is even human as she is faster than a shadow. Hizuru tells her to scan her and learn herself and Shiori states she will do, once she kills her. Hizuru then stabs herself with chopsticks and Shiori's shadow that was on Hizuru's body, which surprises Shiori, who then run to the third floor. Hizuru follows and enters Shiori's room. She then feels Shiori's presence and tells her its pointless as if she attempts to scan her, she knows that she won't be able to move for couple of seconds and will then kill her. Annoyed, Shiori retreats in her shadow and run past Hizuru and escapes through the window. As she goes outside, Ginjiro Nezu starts shooting her with a nail gun, but she manages to get past him. At a corner, Shinpei jumps and tackles Shiori, who attempts to escape and bites him, but Ginjiro comes and shoots her shadow three times and tells Shinpei to release her as once a shadow is pierced three times, it can't move. They question Shiori, who confirms that she killed Ushio. Shinpei gets angry and asks why and Shiori explains that the end is coming and she wanted to escape with her family. She states she is reborn and believes to be the true Shiori now and asks Shinpei to become a shadow and her big brother, but Hizuru then kills her.

Shadow Alain Kofune: Shadow Alain gets produced by Mio to learn if real Alain knows where Ushio is. Later, at the lunch at the crematorium, Alain goes to the bathroom. Shadow Alain follows him there. He sees that one of the toilet stalls has "maintenance" note and opens the next one, but instead of Alain, he sees Hizuru, who immediately slams a large hammer at Alain's shadow and explains that she calculated 17 different scenarios where Shadow Alain would attack Alain. Shadow Alain wonders what she is doing in the men's bathroom, but his face gets smashed and Shadow Alain dies from the hammer hit.

Shadow Ushio Kofune: Check main article Ushio Kofune.

Baby-like Shadows: In an old tunnel under the old clinic, Shinpei, Ushio and Sou encounter a baby-like shadow, who is missing top half of its head and is deaf and blind. The shadow is feeding on rats, but managed to smell them. The shadow avoids Shinpei, but is then hit by Sou's bat. To soften the attack, it transforms to its flat form and then back to its baby form and jumps on Sou. As its about to kill him, Shinpei shoots it with a nailgun, making it unable to move. Sou then throws it towards Ushio, who kills the shadow.

Following the tunnel, Sou, Shinpei and Ushio, encounter more baby-like shadows in a natural cave. The three of them, manage to fight them off and escape.

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.

Shadow Negoro: Shadow Negoro helps out Seido Hishigata as he prepares a body for Haine to eat. As the time for eating comes, Negoro brings two coffins to Haine, one with Tadashi Miura and the other with Ushio. When Shinpei and Shadow Ushio retake Ushio's body, Heine gets angry they stole her food and buffs up Negoro, making her wild and muscular. Negoro then jumps in to fight Ushio, but ends up killed by her.

Shadow Ushio Kofune: Check main article Ushio Kofune.
 * -| 5th Loop =

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.

Shadow Ushio Kofune: Check main article Ushio Kofune.
 * -| 6th Loop =

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.

Shadow Mio Kofune: Ginjiro had taken a snipe spot and awaiting for the shadows to come at the elementary school. Mio sneaks up behind him and kills him.

Shadow Ushio Kofune: Check main article Ushio Kofune.
 * -| 7th Loop =

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.

Shadow Mio Kofune: Mio arrives with Shide and Heine and goes to fight Shinpei, but he runs with Ushio. Haine then orders her to kill Ginjiro, but real Mio, Sou and Tokiko stand in her way. Tokiko summons two stray shadows, which keeps her away. The shadows smash her, but Mio eventually manages to go behind them and attempts to kill Tokiko, but first Mio burns her and second Sou pins her with a nailgun. After Heine escapes, the group ask Ushio to turn shadow Mio into an ally.

Once Shadow Mio turns to Shinpei's ally, she reveals what she knows about shadows. As the group decides to head to Hishigata Clinic, Shinpei asks her to protect Mio. Shadow Mio wonders if he is afraid of her and Shinpei confirms, as she had killed him a few times, but Shadow Mio states it was a different Mio from different timeline. She agrees, but states that in the end, only Shinpei can protect Mio.

She copies Tokiko and they go into the Hishigata Clinic. When they face Seido, he takes Sou's gun and shoots Tokiko, but Tokiko then stops him, turning back to Mio. She attempts to copy Seido, but finds out he is immune.

Shadow Asako & Tetsuo: Asako and Tetsuo arrive with Shide and Heine at the school. As Shinpei and Ushio run, Haine orders them and other shadows to chase them. Eventually Haine merges all shadows into Shide, but soon they end up caught in a fire caused by Ushio and Shinpei. Haine and Shide manage to escape, but all other shadows die from the fire.

Shadow Negoro: Negoro takes Ushio's real body and shows herself in front of Shinpei's group. She gives Seido a message from Shide, that he thanks him for his service, but its the end. She then gives Shinpei a message from Shide, that tells him he is surprised he survived, but is powerless to stop them and all will end in two days. Negoro then later threats Shide's wounds, who then absorbs her.

Shadow Kaoru Hitobuchi: In the forest, Kaoru was after three kids. As Ushio comes, she kills two kid shadows that were with Kaoru, but Kaoru runs behind the kids, however, she is then shot by Shinpei. While she dies and since she used to be a teacher of Shinpei, she notes that he had grown up and wonders if he is doing okay. As Shinpei confirms, Kaoru's shadow dies.


 * -| 8th Loop =

Shadow Mio Kofune: Shinpei returns to Kofune restaurant and hears noises from his room, where he finds shadow Mio, who was pinned by Mio in fear her hack could have been undone after Ushio's death. Shinpei receives a call from Hizuru's phone by Haine in Shinpei's form. She tells him that Hizuru is at Torajima, but Mio at Alain's garden and he can save only one.

Shinpei and shadow Mio arrive at Alain's garden, but are only able to find Masahito, who informs them that Mio and Sou have been send for Haine to eat. Masahito suggest that Mio kills Shinpei and he restarts the loop, but Mio kills Masahito. She then feels how Haine eats Mio and informs Shinpei that Mio is dead. Shinpei asks her to scan Masahito, but after doing so, she states he doesn't have any memories. Mio then feels something and they find badly injured Tokiko, who before dying, tells Shinpei to protect Ryunosuke and Hizuru. Mio scans Tokiko and shows her memory to Shinpei, who then forms a new plan and decide to restart the loop.

Shadow Ryunosuke Minakata: While controlling Hizuru and fighting Shide, Hizuru transfers Ryunosuke into Shide's armor. As the armor is "nobody", Ryunosuke is able to invade it and take part of it from Shide, forming his own shadow.

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.


 * -| 9th Loop =

Shadow Mio Kofune: Shinpei goes to free Mio in his room. Using her shadow form, they are able to move faster than a human and manages to catch up to Mio and Sou, and explain the situation. Shinpei and Mio then head to Torajima, where they find Shide had defeated Hizuru. As Shide and Haine leave, Shinpei wants to restart the loop, but Hizuru and Mio stop him, stating he is at his power limit and can't save everyone.

Seeing the necklace in Shinpei's pocket, Mio explains that Ushio's memories are inside of it and that's what scared Haine and Shide. However, she is unable to read them as Ushio made sure only she can read it, so that Haine isn't able to get her memories. Shinpei then realizes that Ushio will be returning as at the festival she showed for the first time without memories and they can use the necklace to restore her memories.

They manage to find and restore Ushio's memories. Ushio attempts to fight Shide, but Mio stops her and shares Shinpei's plan and then Shinpei loops back with Ushio.

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.


 * -| 10th Loop =

Shadow Mio Kofune: Shinpei's group proceeds into Hiruko cave, but they face a black barrier. Shinpei then calls Mio as he made her steal some fireworks and they blow up the barrier. Proceeding, Shinpei hears a loud noise. Mio explains its the controlling signal that Haine emits. She used to find it smooth, but after Ushio hacked her, she founds it horrible and had erased the sensation of it so she doesn't hear it. However, as Shinpei is a human, he can't ignore it. Ushio then makes Shinpei focus on her and manages to banish the signal from the region, making Mio wonder how she generated a signal to counter Haine's one.

A bit later, they get attacked by Shide. Following Shinpei's plan, Mio attempts to attack Haine, but she senses her and dodges. As Haine senses all shadows, she sense the printed nailgun and shoots it, but Sou then shoots her from the side, making her realize this was a trap. Mio then slashes Haine, who is unable to warn Shide about Ushio's attacks and Ushio kills him. Another Shide appears, but Ushio punches Hiruko's main body and his mud armor falls off and Mio kills him. With Haine defeated, Mio expects to disappear and says goodbye to Shinpei, but as she isn't disappearing, she guesses that Ushio held back on Haine.

Four-Armed Shadow Shide: Check main article Shide.

Tooth-Armed Shadow: A shadow who can control floating teeth and is missing the top of its head from the jaw up. The shadow attacks the stray Guil, in which Shinpei's group is hidding. It pierces Guil with 2 of its teeth, but Guil dodges and the third teeth doesn't connect. Controlling Guil, Tokiko breaks part of the cave to make a wall from the debris and stays behind with Guil to fight the shadow, while the group proceeds.