Defense Force

The **Japan Anti-Kaiju Defense Force** (日本防衛隊, *Nihon Bōei-tai*) or simply known as **Defense Force**, is a military organization specialized in taking down and neutralizing kaiju. It has various bases all around Japan. The Defense Force is governed by the Neutralization Bureau.

## History

Ever since its creation, the Defense Force has neutralized every kaiju appeared on the scene to threaten humanity.

Ten years ago, the Defense Force fought a series of cataclysms involving Kaiju No. 6. The casualties counted 200 officers and 3 Captains losing their lives, along with Director General Shinomiya's wife. Ever since that event, the Defense Force struggles to prepare its ranks for the next cataclysm event.

## Joining Process

To join the Defense Force candidates must pass a First-Stage Examination which consists of filling in some documents.

The second part of the exam is a two-part system, consisting of a physical test and an aptitude test. While the first one involves regular military physical training, the aptitude test changes every year and it's the real test of one's natural ability. The test can either be Kaiju Disposal or Kaiju Neutralization.

Candidates who passed the exam receive their results days later and take part in the Presentation of Enlistment Certificate where they are presented as official Force members and vow to give their life to the Force.

## Ranks

Officers of the Defense Force are differentiated through ranks. The ranks represent the militants' status within the corps.

The Defense Force's ranks are as follows:

* **Director General** (長官, *Chōkan*)
* **Deputy Director** (副長官, *Fuku Chōkan*)
* **Division Captain** (隊長, *Taichō*)
* **Division Vice-Captain** (副隊長, *Fuku Taichō*)
* **Platoon Leader** (小隊長, *Ko Taichō*)
* **Officer** (隊員, *Taiin*)
* **Cadet** (候補生, *Kōho-sei*)

Other kinds of role include **Operations Leaders** (オペレーターのリーダー, *Operētā no rīdā*), these being skilled analysts who maneuver and command neutralization operations from afar.

## Equipment and Arsenal

The normal equipment of the Defense Force
The members of the Defense Force possess a huge variety of equipment, with the most important item being the suit itself, equipped with a gas mask and a fair amount of utilities. Most of the equipment and the weapons owned by the Defense Force are made by Izumo Tech, the biggest anti-kaiju weapon manufacturer in Japan. The arsenal of most of the members consists of rifles, guns, combat knives and various kinds of bullets. Rounds are stored into a **Uni-socket** (ユニソケット, *Yunisoketto*), magazines carrying the power-bestowing organs of kaiju, known as uni-organ. This allows the bullets to recreate the kaiju's powers. Known types are:

* **Explosive rounds** (炸裂弾, *Sakutersu-dan*): Made from a Honju appeared in August 4th 1970.
* **Freezing rounds** (凍結弾, *Tōketsu-dan*): Made from a Honju appeared in February 19th 1988.

Defense Force officers possess two kinds of official uniforms: a normal tracksuit used as the main uniform, and two formal military uniform.

The standard uniform of the Defense ForceThe first formal uniform of the Defense ForceThe second formal uniform of the Defense Force
### Combat Suit

The combat suit used by members of the Defense Force, provided by Izumo Tech and sporting its logo along with that of the Neutralization Bureau, is a bioweapon made of kaiju cells and muscle fibers. Depending on the **Unleashed Combat Power** (解放戦カ, *Kaihō-sen Ka*) of every user, it accordingly augments the wearer's physical attributes like strength, speed, precision, and reflexes. The suit itself has a jet-black color with various armored guards; green on the chest, knees and for the pockets, and silver on the shoulders, waist, wrists, boots and on the metallic spine-like armor on the back. During missions in extremely low temperatures, Defense Force officers wear large white coat and pants on their combat suit.

Abuse or extented use of the combat suit's power can cause overheat, injuring its wearer and causing physical pain to the point of making them bleed due to exhaustion.

When using a **Full Release**, the user is seemingly able to use 100% of their combat suit’s power. Users of a Numbered Weapon gains a level of power equal to a daikaiju.

The combat suit of the Defense ForceWinter uniforms

### Personal Weapons

Due to them being the strongest combatants within their division, the Captains and Vice-Captains are given customized weapons to suit their personal fighting styles. A Platoon Leader or an officer with exceptional combat skills may also be given a personal weapon.

Some of these weapons include.

* Captain Narumi's bayonet
* Vice-Captain Hasegawa armor
* Platoon Leader Shinonome's machine gun
* Platoon Leader Tachibana's shotgun
* Officer Shinomiya's axe
* Captain Shinomiya's spear
* Captain Ashiro's cannon
* Captain Ashiro's Anti-Giant-Class Kaiju Rail Gun
* Vice-Captain Hoshina's dual blades
* Vice-Captain Hoshina's katana
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* First Division Captain Gen Narumi's **GS-3305** bayonet.
* First Division Vice-Captain Eiji Hasegawa's unnamed battle armor.
* First Division Platoon Leader Rin Shinonome's unnamed machine gun.
* First Division Platoon Leader Tachibana's unnamed shotgun.
* First Division Officer Kikoru Shinomiya's **AX-0113** axe.
* Second Division former Captain Hikari Shinomiya's **LC-0039** spear.
* Third Division Captain Mina Ashiro's **T-25101985** cannon.
* Third Division Captain Mina Ashiro's **Anti-Giant-Class Kaiju Rail Gun**, a giant version of a cannon.
* Third Division Vice-Captain Soshiro Hoshina's **SW-2033** dual blades.
* Third Division Vice-Captain Soshiro Hoshina's **SW-1023** katana.
* Sixth Division Captain Soichiro Hoshina's unnamed katana.

### Numbers Weapons

The corpses of Identified Kaiju are turned into particularly powerful weapons known as **Numbers** (識別怪獣兵器 (ナンバーズ) , *Nanbāzu*, lit. "Identification Kaiju Weapon"). Provided by Izumo Tech, these weapons are battlesuits which keep the abilities and strength of a kaiju when it was alive and are strong enough to seriously damage or kill Daikaiju-class monsters; however the user must be compatible with them to use them properly.

When users of Numbers Weapons sync with the energy and cells of a Daikaiju, it triggers stimulation in their brains and causes an abnormal spike in neurotransmitter level and trasmittion rate. As a result, the user's basic human desire and nature come to surface and, depending on their personality, the impulse is so strong to risk injuries in the user's body. Repeated usage of a Numbers weapon costs a lot of strain on the users body and shaves years off their life that could ultimately be fatal.

As reported by Captain Akutsu of the Northern Division, a Numbers Weapon user can see the **Ghost** (幻 (ゴー) 影 (スト) , *Gōsuto*, lit. "Illusion") of the weapon's previous user while wearing the suit. Despite the reason still being unknown, Gen Narumi theorizes that Ghosts are the Identified Kaiju's memories of the suit's previous user. It is in fact possible for a Numbers Weapon user to see and even sense the Identified Kaiju's presence while wearing the suit.

Due to being made from the body of a living kaiju, Numbers Weapon 10 is the only case of a "sentient weapon", with the suit containing the conscience of Kaiju No. 10 and thus being able to speak and, although partially, move on its own.

Some of these weapons include.

* Captain Narumi's Numbers Weapon 1
* Director General Shinomiya's Numbers Weapon 2
* Officer Shinomiya's Numbers Weapon 4
* Officer Ichikawa's Numbers Weapon 6
* Vice-Captain Hoshina's Numbers Weapon 10
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* First Division Captain Gen Narumi's **Numbers Weapon 1**, a combat suit made from the corpse of Kaiju No. 1 and a pair of eyes made from its retina, marked **RT-0001**.
* Director General Isao Shinomiya's **Numbers Weapon 2**, marked **FS-1002**, a pair of gauntlets and a combat suit made from the corpse of Kaiju No. 2.
* **Numbers Weapon 3**, a weapon made from the corpse of Kaiju No. 3 and used by an unnamed Northern Division member.
* First Division Officer Kikoru Shinomiya's **Numbers Weapon 4**, a combat suit made from the corpse of Kaiju No. 4.
* **Numbers Weapon 5**, a weapon made from the corpse of Kaiju No. 5 and used by an unnamed Northern Division member.
* Fourth Division Officer Leno Ichikawa's **Numbers Weapon 6**, marked **EC-0115**, a combat suit made from the corpse of Kaiju No. 6.
* **Numbers Weapon 7**, a weapon made from the corpse of Kaiju No. 7.
* Third Division Vice-Captain Soshiro Hoshina's **Numbers Weapon 10**, a combat suit made from the body of Kaiju No. 10.

## Fighting Style

Officers in the Defense Force who gain access to powerful weapons use specific repertoires of technques, named **Squadron Style** (隊式, *Tai-shiki*). Going from armed to hand-to-hand combat, the Squadron Style is a Defense Force-exclusive fighting style learnt and used by the officers in battle. Aside from the aid of weapons, the style is effective nonetheless.

It's worth noting that, since officers from the Hoshina Family use their own swordsmanship style, the Squadron Style is not mandatory for every officer.

Most of the styles involve six techniques overall. Some of these are:

* **Axe Technique**: A axemanship style used by Kikoru Shinomiya.
* **Bayonet Technique**: A bayonet-centered style used by Gen Narumi
* **Combat Technique**: A hand-to-hand fighting style perfect by Isao Shinomiya and used by Isao and Soshiro Hoshina.

## Known Members

### Divisions

The Defense Force is divided in **Divisions** (部隊, *Butai*), large military groups who engage in kaiju killing missions all over their stabilized area. Each division has its own Captain and Vice-Captain, along with many platoons led by a remarkably powerful soldier. Division operations are guided by the aid of Operations Leaders, who assess the situation from data and computers and announce kaijus' arrivals or deaths.

The Japanese Defense Force currently counts sixteen divisions, located all over the nation and divided in four groups.

* **Eastern Divisions** (東方師団, *Tōhō Shidan*): First Division, Second Division, Third Division and Fourth Division, operating in the Chubu and Kanto regions.
* **Western Divisions** (西方師団, *Seihō Shidan*): Fifth Division, Sixth Division, Seventh Division and Eighth Division, operating in the Chugoku, Kansai and Shikoku regions.
* **Northern Divisions** (北方師団, *Hoppō Shidan*): Ninth Division, Tenth Division, Eleventh Division and Twelfth Division, operating in the Tohoku and Hokkaido regions.
* **Southern Divisions** (南方師団, *Nanpō Shidan*): Thirteenth Division, Fourteenth Division, Fifteenth Division and Sixteenth Division, operating in the Kyushu and Okinawa regions.

* First Division
* Second Division
* Third Division
* Fourth Division
* Sixth Division

### Mentioned-only members

* Northern Division Captain **Akutsu** (阿 (あ) 久 (く) 津 (つ) , *Akutsu*).

## Known Bases

* Ariake Maritime Base
* Kanazawa Base (金沢基地, *Kanazawa Kichi*)
* Kumagaya Base (態 (くま) 谷 (がや) 基地, *Kumagaya Kichi*)
* Tachikawa Base
* Matsumoto Base

## Trivia

* The author, Naoya Matsumoto, stated that the Defense Force suit was initially designed to fit Mina Ashiro because it was supposed to be Mina's character design.
* Matsumoto had the Defense Force logo resemble a chery blossom and a torii to bring a Japanese feel to a defensive squad-like atmosphere.
* The Defense Force allows only people under 33 years of age to join the Selection Exam.
* Ever since Hikari Shinomiya joined its ranks, the Defense Force saw a rising numbers of female officers enrolling.
* The Defense Force's name and winged logo may be based on the Pan Pacific Defense Corps from the movie Pacific Rim.
* The most commonly seen weapons carried by the Defense Force are reminiscent of Sig Sauer MCX short barreled rifles equipped with a red dot, magnifier, and suppressor. For small arms, Glock 17 gen 4's are seen frequently equipped with Surefire X300 weapon mounted lights and Trijicon RMRs.
* From Matsumoto's illustration in France, homage to a worker at Kaze, the author states discussing about the French equivalent of the Defense Force.
* According to Fourth Division Captain Jugo Ogata, Numbers Weapons augment the user's desire and instinctive nature. Examples of such instances among confirmed users can be:
	+ Isao Shinomiya, equipped with Numbers Weapon 2, giving his life to kill Kaiju No. 9 in order to preserve Kikoru's future.
	+ Leno Ichikawa, equipped with Numbers Weapon 6, trying to defeat a Mole Type 67 Honju on his own and with no aid in order to prove his worth on the battlefield and become strong enough to save his comrades.
	+ Kikoru Shinomiya, equipped with Numbers Weapon 4, trying to surpass her mother's Ghost to prove her worth as a Defense Force officer and earn her parents' praise.
	+ Gen Narumi, equipped with Numbers Weapon 1, evolving No. 1 powers to kill Kaiju No. 11 in order to finally beat his former master Isao Shinomiya.
	+ Soshiro Hoshina, equipped with Numbers Weapon 10, switching to his single-blade form, trying to prove his worth and skills compared to his older brother Soichiro.

## References

1. ↑ Chapter 57
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Chapter 33
3. ↑ Official Twitter Post
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chapter 39
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Chapter 1
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Chapter 3
7. ↑ Official Twitter Post
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Chapter 38
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Chapter 4
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Chapter 10
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Chapter 35
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Chapter 5
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Chapter 13
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Chapter 22
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Defense Force equipment extra
16. ↑ Chapter 4
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 Chapter 54
18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Chapter 20
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 Chapter 59
20. ↑ Chapter 28
21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Chapter 50
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Chapter 92
23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Chapter 47
24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 Chapter 14
25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Chapter 80
26. ↑ Chapter 19
27. ↑ Chapter 82
28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 28.3 Chapter 11
29. ↑ Chapter 61
30. ↑ Chapter 63
31. ↑ Chapter 25
32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Chapter 26
33. ↑ Chapter 42
34. ↑ Chapter 43
35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 Chapter 72
36. ↑ Chapter 45
37. ↑ Chapter 75
38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 Chapter 89
39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 Chapter 71
40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 Chapter 12
41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 41.2 41.3 Chapter 62
42. ↑ Chapter 44
43. ↑ 43.0 43.1 43.2 43.3 Chapter 79
44. ↑ 44.0 44.1 Chapter 73
45. ↑ Chapter 70
46. ↑ 46.0 46.1 46.2 Chapter 68
47. ↑ Chapter 60
48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 48.2 Chapter 66
49. ↑ Chapter 48
50. ↑ Chapter 36
51. ↑ Mina Ashiro's character profile
52. ↑ Defense Force logo extra
53. ↑ Hikari Shinomiya's character profile
54. ↑ Volume 7 illustration
55. ↑ Chapter 87