The character known as Motoko Kusanagi, often referred to simply as the Major, is the central protagonist of the Ghost in the Shell anime universe. In the 2017 live-action adaptation, she is given the name Mira Killian, though both names refer to the same core identity: a full-body cyborg who serves as the field commander of Public Security Section 9, an elite anti-cybercrime unit within the Japanese government. Her background is rooted in a near-fatal childhood accident, typically depicted as a plane crash, which left her original body so badly damaged that she underwent complete cybernization at approximately nine years of age. The only organic remnants of her original body are her brain and a portion of her spinal cord; everything else is a military-grade prosthetic shell that outwardly resembles a generic mass-production model but is far more advanced and classified. Prior to joining Section 9, she earned the rank of Major while serving in the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force, and her abilities in electronic warfare and covert operations caught the attention of Chief Daisuke Aramaki, who recruited her to lead the unit.

Her personality varies across different anime iterations, but common traits include a strong will, fierce independence, and an analytical, calculating mind. In the original 1995 film, she is portrayed as introspective and brooding, constantly questioning the nature of her ghost—her soul or consciousness—and what it means to be human when nearly every part of her body is artificial. In the Stand Alone Complex television series, she retains her sharp intellect and tactical brilliance but is more approachable and occasionally displays a dry, playful sense of humor, especially in her interactions with her second-in-command, Batou. She is not emotionless but keeps her personal feelings tightly guarded, often using her work as a way to avoid confronting her own existential doubts. Some portrayals show her experimenting with provocative clothing and human vices as a means of exploring her femininity and trying to connect with the humanity she feels distanced from.

Her core motivations revolve around questions of identity, autonomy, and purpose. She is driven by a desire to understand what separates a human from a machine, and whether a ghost can exist independently of a biological body. This philosophical search often leads her to challenge authority, bend rules, and make decisions that prioritize moral truth over institutional loyalty. In the live-action version, Mira Killian begins with implanted false memories and a manufactured identity, and her arc centers on uncovering the truth of her past as Motoko Kusanagi, a young anti-technology activist who was abducted and turned into a weapon without her consent. In both versions, she seeks to reclaim her sense of self and to decide what kind of existence she wants to have.

In the story, Motoko Kusanagi acts as the tactical leader and primary operative of Section 9, handling the most dangerous and sensitive missions. She coordinates a team of specialists, each with their own cybernetic enhancements, and is directly answerable to Chief Aramaki. Her role involves investigating high-level cybercrime, terrorism, and political corruption, often placing her at the center of conflicts between corporate interests, government agencies, and emerging forms of artificial intelligence. She is the most heavily cyberized member of her team, which makes her both their greatest asset and the one most alienated from organic humanity.

Her key relationships include Batou, her loyal friend and partner, who shares her sense of nostalgia for outdated analog objects and often provides emotional grounding; Chief Aramaki, who respects her abilities and gives her considerable operational freedom; and Togusa, a less cyberized member of the team whose relative normality she values as a perspective different from her own. In some continuities, she has a past connection with Hideo Kuze, a fellow survivor of her childhood accident, and their relationship reflects the different paths available to those who have been radically transformed by technology.

Throughout the series, Motoko undergoes significant development. In Stand Alone Complex, flashbacks reveal her difficult adjustment to her prosthetic body as a child, including an incident where she broke a favorite doll because she could not control her new strength. This memory humanizes her and shows that her stoic exterior hides genuine pain and vulnerability. In the 1995 film, her evolution culminates in a fusion with the Puppet Master, an emergent artificial intelligence, allowing her to transcend the limits of her individual shell and explore a new form of existence. In the live-action film, her growth involves rejecting the false narrative imposed by Hanka Robotics and choosing to embrace her original identity while continuing to serve Section 9 on her own terms.

Her notable abilities are extensive and reflect her status as a top-tier cyborg. She possesses superhuman strength, speed, agility, and reflexes, allowing her to leap between buildings, perform advanced acrobatics, and engage in hand-to-hand combat with overwhelming efficiency. She is an expert in multiple martial arts and military tactics. Her most formidable skill is her cyberbrain hacking capability; she can penetrate secure networks, override other cyberbrains, take control of remote drones, and even inhabit different bodies by transferring her ghost between hosts. She also uses a thermoptic camouflage system that renders her invisible, and she is a highly accurate marksman with a wide range of weapons. Chief Aramaki once described her abilities as rarer than extrasensory perception, noting that government agencies hire people like her to eliminate targets without leaving any trace. Her mind is as sharp as her body, and she is a leading specialist in fourth-generation warfare and cyberbrain combat.