Despite their best efforts, the remaining members of Section 9 are rounded up one by one by the government forces; only Batou and Motoko are left.

The tables seem to be turning in favor of Section 9, but the nuclear missile is still being prepared for launch.

After being shot, Togusa's in the hospital and about to go into surgery, but he is desperate to pass on what he's learned to the rest of Section 9. As Togusa fights for his life, the rest of Section 9 takes over the case, but others within the government have learned of the investigation and are not happy.

The government orders Section 9 disbanded. Aramaki is taken away, and Togusa is arrested. Motoko assembles the remaining team members at HQ for one final mission. They prepare for a full-scale assault while Elite troopers and Armed Suits descend on Section 9 HQ.

While field testing new recruits, the Major finds herself hacked, and an old woman tells her a story from her past.

Togusa has been released from jail and he's given papers showing the dissolution of Section 9. Out of work and depressed, he tries to find information on the others, but there is nothing available. Thinking that he has nothing left to lose, he goes to assassinate the man responsible when he is stopped by–Batou!

The Prime Minister is taken into custody, and the military begins its strike on Dejima. The Major and part of Section 9 head to Dejima to try to hand over the nuclear device to the military there, in order to defuse the situation, while Ishikawa heads to SPring-8 to deliver the rest of the plutonium.

Kuze manages to take down the jamming plane, but becomes trapped in rubble with the Major. The Tachikomas begin discussing what to do about the nuclear submarine they have spotted, and Batou manages to convince the special forces that have been sent to kill them to listen to him.

Togusa is on the trail of the Laughing Man again, and this time, his investigations lead him towards both a leading micromachine corporation and an NGO called the Sunflower Society.

Saito recounts his first run-in with the Major, and how he became part of the group that would eventually become Section 9.

Marco Amoretti, a former Navy Petty Officer from the American Empire, has come to Japan and is committing heinous acts of brutality against women. Section 9 is assisted in this matter by the American Empire's CIA. While this doesn't sit well with Public Security's members, Batou finds the whole case particularly hard on his psyche as the nightmares from his past rear their ugly head.

The Major and Batou are flown to Berlin in an effort to track down a terrorist called "Angel's Feathers". While there, Batou attracts the attention of a young girl in a wheelchair.

Much to the chagrin of Batou, Motoko, and the rest of the team, Kuze and the refugees manage to escape in one of the camouflaged boats. They are further hampered when an explosion causes heavy losses, leaving them unable to follow the fleeing boat.

Motoko is about to be fitted for her new prosthetic body. But when the doctor arrives and begins the procedure, it's clear that she has no intent of letting Motoko out alive. Meanwhile, Aramaki receives a disturbing message that his brother has been kidnapped.

The Laughing Man returns! And, just as he did six years ago, he kidnaps the president of Serano Genomics without being detected. Section 9 arrives at Serano's house too late, and sets out to find him.

The Tachikomas, Ishikawa, and Borma locate a suspicious file believed to be the Individual Eleven virus, The Major, Batou, Saito go after Kuze, and the Individual Eleven prepare to put their plan into action.

The government declares martial Law in Dejima, believing that the refugees have a nuclear device and plan to use it to gain independence. When the refugees' connection to Kuze is cut off, one shot begins a bloody war.

As Togusa and Bato track down Nanao, Motoko and Paz are attempting to protect the Superintendent-General at a press conference about the police misuse of interceptors. When the virus does hit, Motoko and Paz have to act fast to save the intended victim. Meanwhile, the road to Nanao=A hits a dead end.

Togusa goes undercover at a hospital for patients with Closed Cyberbrain Syndrome, a hospital completely cut off from communication with the outside world.

One of the Tachikomas decides to take a little stroll through the city. It meets a little girl, Miki, who is searching for her lost dog and it agrees to help her. On their journey, the Tachikoma finds a strange box.

Section 9 heads to Etorofu in search of Kuze. During their investigations, the Major finds an interesting floppy disk on the body of a dead addict.

While working late, Togusa gets a call from one of his colleagues from his days on the police force. It seems that he's uncovered something strange happening with the investigators in the Laughing Man Unit, a special task force formed to catch the infamous cyber criminal known only as the Laughing Man. But before he can meet with Togusa, he's killed in a car accident.

A routine live-fire exercise goes wrong, leaving a fleet of AI controlled helicopters flying above a refugee area, firing on anyone who comes near. And a mysterious and creepy man known as Gohda arrives to tell Section 9 how to handle it.

Kenbishi Heavy Industries has built a state-of-the-art multiped tank. There's only one problem–it's gone haywire and started moving on its own. Section 9 is called in to stop it, as the Self Defense Force will not get involved. Now, it's up to Motoko, Batou, and the rest of Section 9 to stop the tank and figure out what made it go berserk in the first place.

The Major has become worried about the Tachikomas. It appears that their AIs have developed much more quickly and in ways that were not anticipated; they have begun speaking about their "individuality".