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:

  1. Preserve the balance of souls across all worlds.

  2. Defend Seireitei and the Soul King’s order.

  3. 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.”