is a fictional intelligence department from Masamune Shirow

Masamune Shirow

is an internationally renowned manga artist, born on November 23, 1961.Masamune Shirow is a pen name, based on a famous swordsmith, Masamune. He is best known for the manga Ghost in the Shell, which has since been turned into two theatrical anime movies, two anime TV series, an anime TV movie, and...

's Ghost in the Shell

Ghost in the Shell

is a Japanese multimedia franchise composed of manga, animated films, anime series, video games and novels. It focuses on the activities of the counter-terrorist organization Public Security Section 9 in a futuristic, cyberpunk Japan ....

anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 and manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series. In the story, it exists under the Japanese Ministry of Home Affairs

Ministry of Home Affairs (Japan)

was a ministry in the Japanese government that existed from July 1, 1960 to January 5, 2001 and is now part of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. The head of the ministry was a member of a cabinet....

. In some translations, the name is given as Public Safety Section 9. In the original movie, it is known as the Shell Squad or Security Police Section 9.

Its operatives are trained in various methods ranging from investigations to cyberwarfare, as their structure was based on the German GSG-9

GSG 9

The GSG 9 der Bundespolizei , is the elite counter-terrorism and special operations unit of the German Federal Police.-History and name:...

. They had cross-training exercises in the past with the British SAS's

Special Air Service

Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...

 22nd Regiment.

History

Public Security Section 9 was established as a search and rescue organization. Officially billed as an international organization

Organization

An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...

, it is actually a counter-terrorist network and anti-crime unit operating in the Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese National Public Safety Commission

National Public Safety Commission (Japan)

The is a Japanese Cabinet Office commission. It is headquartered in the 2nd Building of the Central Common Government Office at 2-1-2 Kasumigasaeki in Chiyoda, Tokyo....

. Its operatives are allowed to act with or without government consent as they are almost unknown to the public eye. In particular, Section 9 and its members are among the best cyber warfare operatives in the country, and as a result usually end up involved in cases relating to the internet

Internet

The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...

, such as hacking

Hacker (computer security)

In computer security and everyday language, a hacker is someone who breaks into computers and computer networks. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, including profit, protest, or because of the challenge...

 and cyberterrorism.

Ghost in the Shell

Major Motoko Kusanagi

Motoko Kusanagi

is a fictional Japanese character in the Ghost in the Shell anime and manga series. She is a cyborg employed as the squad leader of Public Security Section 9, a fictional division of the real Japanese National Public Safety Commission. She is voiced by Atsuko Tanaka in the movies and the Ghost in...

 was dispatched by Section 9 to spy

SPY

SPY is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* SPY , ticker symbol for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts* SPY , a satirical monthly, trademarked all-caps* SPY , airport code for San Pédro, Côte d'Ivoire...

 on a building in New Port City. A foreign power is conspiring to recruit a domestic engineer to fix the Project 2501

Project 2501

is an original character from the manga Ghost in the Shell. It is an artificial intelligence program secretly developed by Section 6 of Public Security that develops sentience...

 "bug". The team moves in while Major activates her therm-optic camouflage. The foreign official refuses to return the engineer

Engineer

An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...

, while Kusanagi moves in and kills him.

Stand Alone Complex

During the investigation of the Laughing Man

Laughing Man (Ghost in the Shell)

The is a fictional character in the anime series Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. His voice actor is Kōichi Yamadera, while he is voiced in Bandai Entertainment's English dub by Steven Blum.-Background:...

 case, Major Kusanagi posed as the Laughing Man in order to uncover a conspiracy

Conspiracy (political)

In a political sense, conspiracy refers to a group of persons united in the goal of usurping or overthrowing an established political power. Typically, the final goal is to gain power through a revolutionary coup d'état or through assassination....

 held against the Micro Machine company by the Japanese government. After higher-ranking government officials uncovered information about the investigation conducted by Section 9, the government disbanded the agency and declared war

War

War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...

 on them.

In preparation for an attack on their headquarters

Headquarters

Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...

 by the Umibozu's shock troopers and their Type 303 Armed Suit robots, all remaining Section 9 members barricade

Barricade

Barricade, from the French barrique , is any object or structure that creates a barrier or obstacle to control, block passage or force the flow of traffic in the desired direction...

d themselves into the building and fought the invaders with all the heavy weaponry they could muster. Failing that, they assembled a diversion and escaped through a passage located in the sewers

Sanitary sewer

A sanitary sewer is a separate underground carriage system specifically for transporting sewage from houses and commercial buildings to treatment or disposal. Sanitary sewers serving industrial areas also carry industrial wastewater...

 of New Port City. They are all eventually captured, with the Major apparently killed.

Togusa

Togusa

is the second most prominently featured male character in the Ghost in the Shell manga and anime series. In Stand Alone Complex, as well as the original Ghost in the Shell movie, it is stated that he is the only member of Section 9 who has not undergone cybernetic replacement in some manner as he...

 spent the next three months wondering what happened to the rest, before suddenly meeting up with Batou. The whole thing turned out to be one of Aramaki's brilliant plans, sacrificing Section 9 in order to leave the prime suspect wide-open to arrest, investigation and prosecution. Everyone, including the Major, is perfectly fine, and Aramaki is in the process of rebuilding and securing funding for the newly-reborn Section 9, which does not happen until 2nd GIG

Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG

is the second season of the anime series Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, based on Masamune Shirow's manga Ghost in the Shell. It was written and directed by Kenji Kamiyama, with original character design by Hajime Shimomura and a soundtrack by Yoko Kanno...

.

2nd GIG

The 2nd season starts with Section 9 still not existing in an official capacity because of an amendment to the Special Forces Bill. The first episode involves a hostage situation in which eleven terrorists, who call themselves the Individual Eleven, hold up the Chinese Embassy demanding a swift change in the Refugee Action Policy. In other words, they demand the freedom of the refugees from the stand point that refugees drain the country. The previous PM of Japan issued a temporary bill that allowed for the entrance of refugees into certain zones, but the bill was never repealed. Because the new PM, Kayabuki, planned to repeal the policy soon, she had to act quickly on the terrorists before their demands became known in order to make sure it didn't seem like she was caving in to terrorist pressure.

Section 9 is promised full reestablishment, and the approval of their new budget proposal that includes the reinstatement of think tanks (Tachikomas), on the condition that there are no hostage casualties in the process of stopping the terrorists before the press blackout runs out. From this point on the 2nd season goes on to focus on the refugee issue from multiple perspectives, along with providing missing background information on almost all of the characters.

A new group is involved in this season, The Individual Eleven. This group first appears in the first episode as a group of Individual Eleven "copycats" take hostages in the Chinese Embassy. Later in the series it is revealed that the Individual Eleven's true intentions were to harm the wellbeing of refugees that had taken shelter in Japan at the end of World War IV. However, this group ends themselves in a crossfire between members. Only one survives, Hideo Kuze, who then sides with the refugees and puzzles Section 9 as to his motives.

Solid State Society

Section 9 has been radically reformed after the Major leaves in order to pursue investigations of her own. The section has increased in size, and is now run by Togusa, because Batou declined the position. Solid State Society starts off by focusing on the cyberbrain suicides of members of a terrorist organization that gained asylum in Japan. This case leads into the finding that around twenty thousand children may have been abducted. The mastermind behind the crimes is known as "The Puppeteer," and is classified as a Wizard Class Hacker.

Location

Public Security Section 9 is located in the fictional Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese city of Niihama-shi (also known as New Port City). The exact location of Section 9's headquarters

Headquarters

Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...

 is held as top-secret and is only known by the Japanese government and Section 9 employees. Their building is known to the public as a false security company.

Niihama-shi itself appears to be based in and around Osaka

Osaka

is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...

. Several points of reference include road naming, maps, and the appearance of the Sea Memorial Park in an episode involving the Tachikoma in Stand Alone Complex. This is in keeping with the fictional chronology of Ghost in the Shell - In the late 1990's, the Third World War broke out, and Tokyo (among other areas) received the full force of nuclear bombardment. The evidence of this bombardment is in the form of massive craters on the coastline of Japan, visible in maps seen in various episodes of both TV series, implying (though not verified in dialogue) to be the result of surface detonation oh hydrogen bombs. Tokyo itself became uninhabitable until the deployment of the Japanese Miracle - Protein-based nano-machines which seek out and sequester nuclear fallout particles, and assemble them in agglomerations for orderly disposal and land and sea sanitation. Togusa, on visiting Tokyo, at one point exits the Tokyo City Hall, now sited in the middle of Tokyo's new bay, which in turn was sculpted by the action of a thermonuclear bomb.

The capital therefore had to move - Kyoto was completely unsuitable, and therefore a new city built on recalimed land in Osaka Bay was deemed the most appropriate - Niihama Shi.

Osaka as the basis of Niihama Shi was selected as Ghost in the Shell is an anime series of MBS

MBS

MBS may stand for:* Maha Bodhi School, a school in Singapore* Mainichi Broadcasting System, television and radio broadcaster in Osaka, Japan* Manchester Business School, business school at the University of Manchester...

, based in Osaka.

Section 9 Headquarters facilities include a rooftop helipad, underground car park, Operator

Operator (Ghost in the Shell)

An is a fictional class of robot in the Ghost in the Shell series. They are voiced by Eri Oono and Debra Jean Rogers.-Bio:The Operators are designed to handle various tasks within the government agency Public Security Section 9, such as operating computers, carrying equipment within the agency's...

-managed control room, cyber-warfare and information gathering room, holding cells, meeting rooms and Tachikoma

Tachikoma

A is a fictional artificial intelligence, walker/roller in the Ghost in the Shell universe; appearing in the manga, created by Masamune Shirow, and the Stand Alone Complex sub-universe. Nine of them are assigned to Section 9's use originally. They are spider like multi-legged combat vehicles,...

/Fuchikoma/Uchikoma workshop.

Members

Agent	Speciality	Description
Daisuke Aramaki	Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence... /Section Chief	Head of Section 9 and advisor to Prime Minister Prime Minister of Japan The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...  Yoko Kayabuki. He and two other friends he served with under Colonel Tonouda were known as the Tonouda Three. Aramaki also has a brother that he has not seen in years.
Motoko Kusanagi Motoko Kusanagi is a fictional Japanese character in the Ghost in the Shell anime and manga series. She is a cyborg employed as the squad leader of Public Security Section 9, a fictional division of the real Japanese National Public Safety Commission. She is voiced by Atsuko Tanaka in the movies and the Ghost in...	Major Major Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ... /Field Commander	Female cyborg and squad Squad In military terminology, a squad is a small military unit led by a non-commissioned officer that is subordinate to an infantry platoon. In countries following the British Army tradition this organization is referred to as a section...  leader Leadership Leadership has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task". Other in-depth definitions of leadership have also emerged.-Theories:... . She is a highly skilled melee fighter and one of the world's most skilled hackers and net divers. She is also the tactical leader of Section 9. When describing her, the Chief said her abilities are rarer than ESP. She has a lot of military connections, and is the kind of person that sections of the government hire to assassinate without leaving a trace. She can control two remote prosthetic bodies at once.
Ishikawa	Covert Intelligence Intelligence (information gathering) Intelligence assessment is the development of forecasts of behaviour or recommended courses of action to the leadership of an organization, based on a wide range of available information sources both overt and covert. Assessments are developed in response to requirements declared by the leadership...  and Technology Technology Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;... /Executive Officer	Ishikawa is the covert intelligence Intelligence (information gathering) Intelligence assessment is the development of forecasts of behaviour or recommended courses of action to the leadership of an organization, based on a wide range of available information sources both overt and covert. Assessments are developed in response to requirements declared by the leadership...  and technology Technology Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...  specialist. Like Togusa and Saito, he has a low prosthetic percentage. Ishikawa is a master at recognizing data manipulation, along with being highly skilled at hacking in general.
Batou Batou is a main male character in the Ghost in the Shell series, the second best melee fighter in Section 9, and is the second in command under Major Motoko Kusanagi....	Lead Investigator	Batou is an ex-Ranger. Although not officially stated, he seems to jointly hold the position of 3rd in command with Ishikawa. He served in the military with Motoko and Ishikawa (under both of them), and has cybernetic eyes that are used by Rangers, improved strength from cybernetic arms, legs, and also contains other unlisted parts (these parts are not stated, but they can be implied). He primarily does field work with Togusa, and takes point for the Major on serious occasions.
Togusa Togusa is the second most prominently featured male character in the Ghost in the Shell manga and anime series. In Stand Alone Complex, as well as the original Ghost in the Shell movie, it is stated that he is the only member of Section 9 who has not undergone cybernetic replacement in some manner as he...	Investigator/2nd Field Commander	Togusa is mostly human, having only cybernetic memory upgrades and other small brain implants. To Section 9, Togusa is a reminder to them all of true humanity, because he is the most like a normal person compared to the rest of Section 9. He has a family, and strong moral beliefs that visibly get in his way. He primarily does work with Batou, but also investigates on his own at times. Togusa often plays the role of the idealist in Ghost in the Shell, and could easily be said to be the least likely to win in a fight against anyone else in Section 9.
Pazu	Investigator	Before joining the Public Security Commission, Pazu was rumored to have been involved with several yakuza Yakuza , also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...  gangs. He usually teams up with Boma. Pazu seems like a superficial character, but it is later revealed that there is more to him. He is the kind of person that says "I never sleep with the same woman twice," but his basis for such is later found to be that he does not want to pull others into the world he lives in.
Boma	Spotter, Investigator, and bomb specialist	Boma usually handles rear support for the rest of the unit and handles heavy weaponry during assignments. Boma does field work with Pazu, and information gathering with Ishikawa. Boma's character easily gets the least attention of any member of Section 9.
Saito Saito (Ghost in the Shell) is a fictional character from the anime series, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C.. Among the members of Section 9, he is regarded as one of the least cyberized. He can handle any automatic firearm with deadly accuracy and precision, but his primary role is as the unit's tactical sniper...	Tactical Sniper Sniper A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....	Saito is Section 9's primary tactical Military tactics Military tactics, the science and art of organizing an army or an air force, are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating an enemy in battle. Changes in philosophy and technology over time have been reflected in changes to military tactics. In...  sniper, and also a class A super sniper, known to have been a mercenary in the South American campaign. Saito possesses a long-range cybernetic eye called a Hawkeye that can be used for extreme accuracy by making use of satellite linked imaging data. Saito was recruited by the Major while they were on opposing sides. Saito has the second lowest prosthetic percentage in Section 9, but later starts getting new parts due to the requirements of his line of work.
Azuma	Recruit/Field Agent	One of Section 9's newly recruited field operatives from JGSDF intelligence. He was advised to the chief through a friend.
Yano	Recruit	One of Section 9's newly recruited rookie Rookie Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...  and field operatives alongside Azuma.
Tech Specialists	Tachikoma Maintenance/technological forensics and observation	These guys do Tachikoma maintenance and overall oversight of them. They also provide forensic data, and overall observations on technology.

AI Personnel

Unit	Specialty	Description
Fuchikoma	Think Tanks	A 1-man tank (walker/roller) used by members of Section 9 of the National Public Safety Commission in Masamune Shirow's manga Ghost in the Shell. They have four legs and two simple hands with three fingers on extensible arms which double as machine guns. Additional armament consists of either a grenade launcher or heavy machine gun mounted in the tanks "mouth" under its large optical sensor. They possess a simple artificial intelligence and can act independently to support their user in combat. When not in use, they exhibit a childlike personality and provide much of the humor in the series, while also being used to elaborate on Shirow's philosophy and ideas. Fuchikomas were replaced with Tachikoma's in the Stand Alone Complex anime due to copyright problems.
Tachikoma Tachikoma A is a fictional artificial intelligence, walker/roller in the Ghost in the Shell universe; appearing in the manga, created by Masamune Shirow, and the Stand Alone Complex sub-universe. Nine of them are assigned to Section 9's use originally. They are spider like multi-legged combat vehicles,...	Think Tanks	These experimental tanks are used during combat Combat Combat, or fighting, is a purposeful violent conflict meant to establish dominance over the opposition, or to terminate the opposition forever, or drive the opposition away from a location where it is not wanted or needed....  missions and are equipped with a 7.62x51mm light machine gun built into the right arm and an optional 50mm grenade launcher or 12.7mm rotary cannon mounted on a central hardpoint. They can be ridden in like a vehicle and controlled from inside, or remotely through the net. Their systems are universally linked through a central satellite where they develop AI Ai AI, A.I., Ai, or ai may refer to:- Computers :* Artificial intelligence, a branch of computer science* Ad impression, in online advertising* .ai, the ISO Internet 2-letter country code for Anguilla...  traits similar to young girls.
Uchikoma	Think Tanks	These tanks are covered with ultra-heavy armor (unlike the Tachikoma Tachikoma A is a fictional artificial intelligence, walker/roller in the Ghost in the Shell universe; appearing in the manga, created by Masamune Shirow, and the Stand Alone Complex sub-universe. Nine of them are assigned to Section 9's use originally. They are spider like multi-legged combat vehicles,...  units) in the Stand Alone Complex anime, in which they appear at the end of the second season and during the Solid State Society Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. Solid State Society is an OVA and part of the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex series based on Masamune Shirow's manga Ghost in the Shell. It was produced by Production I.G and directed by Kenji Kamiyama.... film. Uchikoma's never reach a state similar to Tachikomas, because the surroundings that they exist in do not provide the requirements for an advancement from AI to individual.
Operators Operator (Ghost in the Shell) An is a fictional class of robot in the Ghost in the Shell series. They are voiced by Eri Oono and Debra Jean Rogers.-Bio:The Operators are designed to handle various tasks within the government agency Public Security Section 9, such as operating computers, carrying equipment within the agency's...	Operators	Are an advanced line of gynoid Gynoid A gynoid is anything which resembles or pertains to the female human form. It is also used in American English medical terminology as a shortening of the term Gynecoid .... s designed to handle the day-to-day matters within Section 9. Although they look human, their AI operating systems are not sophisticated enough to process complex logical problems. The Tachikomas demonstrated their own superiority by causing an Operator to experience a crash using the Liar paradox Liar paradox In philosophy and logic, the liar paradox or liar's paradox , is the statement "this sentence is false"... . Operators confirm commands by repeating them back to humans. Operators can act together as a parallel processor network.
Proto	Tachikoma Tachikoma A is a fictional artificial intelligence, walker/roller in the Ghost in the Shell universe; appearing in the manga, created by Masamune Shirow, and the Stand Alone Complex sub-universe. Nine of them are assigned to Section 9's use originally. They are spider like multi-legged combat vehicles,... 's Maintenance Technician Technician A technician is a worker in a field of technology who is proficient in the relevant skills and techniques, with a relatively practical understanding of the theoretical principles. Experienced technicians in a specific tool domain typically have intermediate understanding of theory and expert...  /Field Agent in Solid State Society	Proto can also be used as an Operator. It is later discovered that he is in fact an experimental bioroid, and Proto stands for prototype. He holds a higher position than operators and provides a position similar to assistant to the Chief late into 2nd Gig, and also during Solid State Society.