Kusanagi and her team head to the northernmost point to monitor the combat cyborg Coil Krasnov. To uncover Coil's objectives and the corruption hidden behind Sagawa Electronics' expansion of the underground factory, Kusanagi heads to Sagawa Electronics headquarters, while Batou and his team head to the underground factory.

A robot escapes from Megatech Body Corporation. It is apprehended by Public Security Section 9, but the robot is inhabited by a Puppet Master. The Puppet Master tells Aramaki and the others that he is a "life form that originated in the sea of information." Immediately after requesting political asylum, the robot is stolen by an unknown assailant.