Gotei 13
I. Overview
The Gotei 13 (護廷十三隊, Thirteen Court Guard Squads) form the core military arm of Soul Society.
Founded over a thousand years ago by Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the Gotei 13’s purpose is threefold:
Preserve the balance of souls across all worlds.
Defend Seireitei and the Soul King’s order.
Cleanse corruption through the sword of the Shinigami.
Each Division (Bantai) has its own structure, creed, and combat doctrine.
At the anime’s beginning (STI 0.0 – “Substitute Shinigami Incident”), the organization stands as follows:
II. Organizational Structure
Captain (隊長 Taichō) – Supreme commander of each Division.
Lieutenant (副隊長 Fukutaichō) – Second-in-command; administrative and field leader.
Seated Officers – Numbered hierarchy (3rd Seat, 4th Seat, etc.).
Unseated Shinigami – Regular combatants and patrol units.
All captains answer to the Captain-Commander of the 1st Division, who leads the Gotei 13 as a whole and represents it before the Central 46.
III. Divisional Roster
1st Division – Command & Leadership
Captain: Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto
Lieutenant: Chōjirō Sasakibe
Role: Administration, military coordination, and supreme enforcement.
“The first flame that never goes out.”
2nd Division – Covert Operations
Captain: Suì-Fēng (Soi Fon)
Lieutenant: Marechiyo Ōmaeda
Role: Onmitsukidō command, assassination, intelligence, and silent elimination.
“Swift death is mercy.”
3rd Division – Deception & Reconnaissance
Captain: Gin Ichimaru
Lieutenant: Izuru Kira
Role: Surveillance, infiltration, counter-intelligence.
“The smile hides the blade.”
4th Division – Medical & Logistics
Captain: Retsu Unohana
Lieutenant: Isane Kotetsu
Role: Healing, relief operations, battlefield recovery, corpse retrieval.
“To heal is to kill pain before the blade does.”
5th Division – Spiritual Research
Captain: Sōsuke Aizen
Lieutenant: Momo Hinamori
Role: Tactical support, Kidō development, morale management.
“Knowledge is the sharpest deception.”
6th Division – Law & Order
Captain: Byakuya Kuchiki
Lieutenant: Renji Abarai
Role: Enforcement of law, discipline, and noble protocol.
“Honor before emotion.”
7th Division – Defense & Morality
Captain: Sajin Komamura
Lieutenant: Tetsuzaemon Iba
Role: Defensive tactics, moral doctrine, honor-based combat.
“Justice wears many masks.”
8th Division – Strategy & Culture
Captain: Shunsui Kyōraku
Lieutenant: Nanao Ise
Role: Flexible command, tactical creativity, inter-division diplomacy.
“War must be survived with wit, not rage.”
9th Division – Internal Security
Captain: Kaname Tōsen
Lieutenant: Shūhei Hisagi
Role: Law enforcement in Rukongai, journal and media oversight, ethics regulation.
“Blindness sees truth more clearly than sight.”
10th Division – Rapid Response Unit
Captain: Tōshirō Hitsugaya
Lieutenant: Rangiku Matsumoto
Role: Quick deployment, reiryoku control, and ice-type defensive tactics.
“Calm heart, frozen will.”
11th Division – Combat Corps
Captain: Kenpachi Zaraki
Lieutenant: Yachiru Kusajishi
Role: Pure melee division; rejects Kidō; dedicated to battle.
“No Kidō. No tactics. Only the fight.”
12th Division – Science & Technology
Captain: Mayuri Kurotsuchi
Lieutenant: Nemu Kurotsuchi
Role: Research, development, experimentation, reishi manipulation.
“The blade of curiosity cuts deeper than steel.”
13th Division – Human World Patrols
Captain: Jūshirō Ukitake
Lieutenant: (Formerly Kaien Shiba, deceased; Rukia Kuchiki acting as junior officer)
Role: Soul Burials, Human World supervision, and moral equilibrium.
“Compassion is the strength that binds worlds.”