Soshiro Hoshina

“	Rainy days, snowy days, birthdays, new year's days... I've lived every day of my life since childhood wielding a sword. I've lived my life with blade always in my mind. That blade... the sword-slay techniques I've cultivated... this thinly cut mass of iron... if there's even the slightest thing that can be saved by any of that... then I've got no choice... but to wield my sword.	„
	~ Soshiro Hoshina

Background

Soshiro Hoshina is the vice-captain of the Third Division of the Defense Force, and the main protagonist of Kaiju No. 8: B-Side, a spin-off series of Kaiju No. 8.

Soshiro is a member of the Hoshina Family, a renowed clan of swordsmen from the Muromachi period. He is also Soichiro Hoshina's younger brother.

This dropdown contains the synopsis of Soshiro Hoshina’s story. Read at your own risk as you may be spoiled otherwise!

Early History Coming from a family of kaiju-killers dating back to the Muromachi period, Soshiro has displayed a great talent in swordsmanship ever since he was a kid. However, Soshiro always lived in the shadow of his older brother Soichiro, who has always been a better swordsman and overall fighter than Soshiro. Furthermore, since his unleashed combat power with firearms was always low, Soshiro had been told his entire life to give up on the Defense Force, both by his own father and by his superior officer. Soshiro eventually joined the Defense Force, an an officer under a different division. One day, he was sent to Tachikawa Base for a meeting regarding a goodwill kendo match between his division and the Third Division. There, he spoke to the soon-to-be retired instructor, who offered Soshiro to take his place. This propose made Soshiro think about his father and his superior officer also suggesting him to become an instructor, effectively trying to persuade him from entering the battlefield. Later that day, he was called in Captain Mina Ashiro's officer, where she commended his sword skills. Suprisingly, instead of discouraging him, Mina asked him to join her division, as his close-quarters abilities would make up for her specialty in long-range attacks. Moments later, Platoon Leader Ebina entered the officer annoucing a miniature kaiju and its yoju have emerged in Ome City. Despite Ebina's blunt reaction upon Soshiro's request to join them, Mina allowed Soshiro to give them aid, starting their relationship as partners on the battlefield. On the way to Ome City, Soshiro was promptly reprimanded by Platoon Leader Ebina, who then told Soshiro about their instructor's word of praise. However, as many others before, Ebina reminded Soshiro that "times have changed". On the scene, Ebina told his men and Soshiro that their job was to dispose of some Lizard-type Yoju that the previous platoon coulnd't neutralize in Zone Lima. As they were facing them, a yoju managed to flee, giving Soshiro the opportunity to chase it and easily slay him. As Soshiro was then observing the massive Honju, he spotted another more mature yoju next to him. While fighting it, however, the monster shoot a stream of acid saliva from its mouth, putting Soshiro in serious difficulty if Ebina and the others didn't join him and kill the kaiju. Much to his disappointment, Soshiro was ordered by Ebina to go look for stranded children in the area. Despite the platoon leader praising Soshiro's skills and job, he deemed him unsuited to face those kaiju. Following his superior's orders, Soshiro started to wonder about his very existence. The Man Who Became a Kaiju Arc During the second-stage examination for the Defense Force, Soshiro Hoshina showed the files of the examinees to Mina Ashiro, guessing she wasn't interested as she only cared about kaiju killing, but as she saw Kafka's file, she decided to listen to him. Soshiro was surprised, but started telling her of all the promising people of that year. He announced that the aptitude test would be kaiju neutralization and explained that each will get a Defense Force Suit, which used kaiju muscle fibers and would give them more strength. He was surprised they got that many people who were able to draw more than 10%, including Kikoru Shinomiya who was able to draw 46%, but then he laughed at Kafka Hibino's 0%. He informed the examinees that there were 46 Yoju and Honju in the area and that Mina Ashiro would also be proctoring this test. When Kafka got injured, he suggested him to give up, but Kafka insisted on keep going. He then saw Leno Ichikawa carrying Kafka and laughed, jokingly wanting them to pass but in the comedy department. As the test was over, Mina was impressed by Kikoru and Soshiro agreed, commenting she would be a linchpin in the future of the Defense Force. They expected 30 dropouts, but due to her presence, no one dropped out and there are minimal injuries. Just then the Honju Kikoru killed mysteriously came back to life and started to wreak havoc all over the place. Before he and Mina could intervene, the kaiju was killed and Kafka and Leno brought Kikoru to safety. Soshiro then noticed that when a fortitude 9.8 kaiju appeared in the area, Kafka's vitals disappeared at the same time. For this reason he decided that, despite the council's decision not to pass Kafka, he would have him pass as his personal cadet. Sagamihara Neutralization Operation at Daybreak Arc Two months later, after the shooting training, he overheard Kafka talking in the bathroom to the other boys about his reason for entering the Defense Force. Soshiro approached Kafka about that the same night and as he warned Kafka not to trust his comrades a kaiju appeared. As the mission started he gave everyone orders to follow, while leading himself a platoon with Kafka and Kikoru in. Later Kafka was able to contact Soshiro informing him of the location of the core of the yoju, earning him Soshiro's praise. Seconds later Soshiro announced Mina's arrival with a cannon. As he once again questioned Kafka's will to pursue his dream to stand next to Mina, Soshiro showed off his ability with the swords by defeating an Yoju. As Mina destroyed the Honju, Soshiro ordered everyone to take care of all the Yoju who came out of his corpse, but moments later a call from platoon leader Ikaruga informs him that Leno Ichikawa and Iharu Furuhashi were lost. As he found out that Kaiju No. 8 was present in the zone, he found him in an alley, unaware that the kaiju was actually Kafka, and tried to attack him. After having all his attacks evaded by the kaiju, Soshiro decided to go all out, releasing 92% of his suit energy. Using mutiple form of his Blade Cutting Technique, Soshiro was still unable to injure his opponent effectively. As he detected the kaiju's core, Soshiro tried to slash it but was ultimately outplayed by Kaiju No. 8 who got away. Then a frustrated Soshiro reported that Kaiju No. 8 escaped to the rest of the Defense Force. As Mina approached him he admitted that it was an embarrassing situation and, at the same time, he remembered how fighting Kaiju No. 8 was like fighting a human. Then, he was informed by Ikaruga that Leno and Iharu saw a worker at Monster Sweeper Inc. transforming into a Humanoid Kaiju. For this reason Soshiro and Konomi Okonogi secretly went to Professional Kaiju Cleaning Company Monster Sweeper Inc. to speak to the staff about their new worker Takamichi Hotaka. When the Third Division officers were celebrating their first mission Soshiro joined them and showed Leno how everyone discussed about the mission and seeked to become stronger. Later, he announced Kafka's promotion to Corps member of the Third Division of the Defense Force. Days later, Soshiro was approached by journalists from Metro TV, who wanted to interview him. They asked him about the talented rookies of that year, including the prodigious Kikoru Shinomiya and the enigmatic Kafka Hibino. Then, Soshiro remembered he had a private training session to hold and invited the journalists to join. During the kendo training, Soshiro explained the situation to the journalists, before the rookie Aoi Kaguragi challenged him to a sparring match. Soshiro bested him with little to no effort, commending the youngster's skills. Then, he was challenged by Kafka, Leno and Iharu, defeating them with no problems, before he was challenged by Kikoru as well. Raid on Tachikawa Base Arc When Mina was forced to leave to the main office of the Defense Force, Soshiro was left as substitute. One night, he was training by reenacting his fight against Kaiju No. 8 to eliminate him once and for all the next time they meet. Just then Kafka interrupted him and after a conversation Soshiro confirmed the high expectations he has on Kafka. Later that night, while investigating on Kaiju No. 8 and No. 9, Soshiro witnessed the attack of dozens of kaiju on Tachikawa Base, and, while giving orders to Konomi, he got ready to fight. Soshiro was then called by Kafka, who told him that since Wyvern-type kaiju are usually lonely they had to be controlled by a powerful leader. Seconds later the leader of those kaiju confronted Soshiro, so the Vice-Captain engaged in combat with him, quickly realizing that that kaiju was on par with Kaiju No. 8. Realising that his opponent wasn't just fighting to kill, but for the thrill of it, Soshiro tried to confine him, with the help of Konomi, outside the gates. After the kaiju destroyed Gate Number Three, Soshiro decided to go all out, thus severing one of the kaiju's arms and releasing the full force of his suit. With the fight going on, he slashed the kaiju multiple times with his style of Sword-Slay Technique before witnessing the kaiju's unexpected transformation. As the kaiju grew in size, reaching the size of a building, Soshiro kept on his attack, barely keeping on since large kaiju are those he has the hardest time against. When blood started coming out of his nose, Soshiro realized that he was overheating due to abusing of the full force of his suit, and that he only had one minute to finish the kaiju off. After arduously arriving behind the kaiju, he was the localized by him and punched through several blocks, losing the full force of his suit. Despite the serious hit, Soshiro was able to keep fighting, driven by his gratitude towards Mina's trust in him and his deep bond with the Defense Force. After being caught in a deadly grasp by the kaiju, Soshiro was then saved by Mina, who came back to thank everyone for their struggles to defend the base and shoot the kaiju in the shoulder. With Mina arriving, they joined forces against the kaiju, despite Soshiro being at his limit. With the fatigue almost reaching him, he was further aided by Kikoru Shinomiya, who was able to cut an opening on the enemy's body before falling from exhaustion. Thanks to her help and driven to his utmost, Soshiro succeeded in exposing the kaiju's core, taunting him as Mina shot it. With the kaiju down, Soshiro told Kikoru to rest before being told the same thing by Mina. As he accepted the offer, he noticed as a massive yoju-bomb was falling from the sky, ready to blow up on Tachikawa Base, with the Second Humanoid Kaiju (now reduced to a talking decapitated head) calling their fight "a draw". Out of nowhere, Soshiro and the others noticed as Kafka rushed at great speeds towards the bomb, before transforming into Kaiju No. 8. With his initial suspicions on him coming true, Soshiro regretted turning a blind eye on him due to Kafka's charm and watched as Kafka punched the bomb away, launching it higher up to the sky above where it detonated several miles into the atmosphere and sparing everybody at the base. Then, Soshiro and Mina proceeded to take the transformed Kafka in custody; the former was seen looking away as his Captain did, appearing dismayed and with an unreadable expression. After Isao Shinomiya's death at the hand of Kaiju No. 9, Soshiro and the rest of the Third Division held their commemorative rites at Tachikawa Base. When Kaiju No. 10 awakened in Tachikawa Base, Soshiro decided to interrogate him to find out more about Kaiju No. 9. Upon being revealed that Kaiju No. 10 was created by No. 9 himself, No. 10 declared that he'd say anything he knew only if Soshiro accepted to weaponize it and wear it as his personal weapon. After Soshiro agreed, he listened to No. 10's insight on the other Kaiju. The Compatible User Arc Soshiro and the rest of the Third Division, some time later, visited the First Division at the Ariake Maritime Base, bringing their encounter to a bickering moment. Then, during an assembly of all the Divisions in the Defense Force and the new Director General Keiji Itami, Soshiro revealed the intel he got from Kaiju No. 10. It was then theorized by Soshiro himself that Kaiju No. 9's hidden location was where the Philippine sea and the Eurasial plate meet underwater, a place inaccessible to humans. Then, remebering that Kaiju No. 9 assimilated Director Isao and his memories and knowledge of the Defense Force, Soshiro also noted that the way to defeat him lies in training the young recruits, then proposing Leno Ichikawa as a possible compatible user of the strongest weapon in the Defense Force arsenal: the one made from Kaiju No. 6's corpse. A month later, Soshiro appeared in the Ariake Maritime Base at night while Kafka Hibino was having a jogging session. Taunting him for not being powerful enough to replaced him as Mina's Vice-Captain, Soshiro quickly attempted to slash Kafka like he was going to do back in Sagamihara, facing Kaiju No. 8. Finally being even with him, Soshiro then thanked Kafka for saving the Third Division during Kaiju No. 10's attack and told him not to transform again since Soshiro himself wanted to destroy Kaiju No. 9. After Kafka decided to decline Soshiro's idea, Soshiro offered him a fight training to improve Kafka's combat skills. Bringing him to Ryunei Shrine, Soshiro told him the story of the temple and challenged Kafka to a sparring match, easily overwhelming him but still praising his training. Underlining Kafka's habit to rely on his kaiju powers, Soshiro decided to teach him Isao Shinomiya's Squadron-Style Combat Technique, to give Kafka something to help him fighting without transforming. Then, Soshiro encouraged Kafka once again to steal his position as Mina's Vice-Captain and the two left the temple. Soshiro then trained Kafka with lower body exercises and promised him to check on him every twice every week. Some time later, Soshiro and other Defense Force upper echelons met to discuss the fourteen unsolved kaiju cases of the last month, preparing a strategy to counter this new No. 9-induced cataclysm theorized by Soshiro himself. At some point, Soshiro and Konomi discussed about him wielding a new weapon since No. 9 probably observed Soshiro's fight with No. 10, hence studying his dual-blade style. Cataclysms Arc During the No. 9-induced catalcysms, Soshiro took action at the Chofu Airport area by wearing the Numbers Weapon 10, freshly made from the body of Kaiju No. 10. With the weapon not only being sentient, but hosting the conscience and latent power of No. 10, Soshiro was forced to come to terms with the kaiju obssessed with him and to synchronize with it to defeat the rampant monsters at the airport. With No. 10 proving to be headstrong and reluctant to follow Soshiro's tactics, the Vice-Captain had trouble moving and eventually decided to give up his body to No. 10's influence, with the two ready the destroy their enemies. Managing to reach a state of semi-synchronization, Soshiro and No. 10 defeated the remaining kaiju. The Second Wave Arc Later, they were approached by Kaiju No. 12. During their fight, No. 12 turns its arms into blades and fight toe-to-toe with Soshiro, who was amazed that a kaiju was able to threaten him in a blade contest. Soshiro, acknowledging No. 12's superior power, assumed the kaiju was the finished product of No. 10, who revealed itself to be a prototype in the past. Pummelled by No. 12, Soshiro had even his swords destroyed by the kaiju. Disarmed and cornered, Soshiro instructed Konomi deploy Case 7: an array of pods containing new katanas. Accepting that he couldn't get his combat power in the No. 10 suit up to his normal level, he opts for switching his fighting style. Despite avoiding it since it was his brother Soichiro's specialty, Soshiro grabs his new katana and challenges No. 12 with his family's single-blade form. Using the new form, Soshiro managed to chop one hand off No. 12, turning the tables. He goes even further by using techniques from the Sword-Slay Style with his new Quick Slash techniques. With the tables turned, Soshiro managed to find No. 12's core, but it managed to adapt before he could reach the core. No. 12 coutners by making a katana of its own and copying Soshiro's single blade form. Shocked by the kaiju's move, Soshiro's resolve to defeat it found its peak, right before he was hit by a slash from No. 12. In a state of trance, Soshiro realized he had lost his right arm, bringing him to a state of despair as he considered quitting the Defense Force since he couldn't be as strong as Soichiro. However, No. 10's laugh made Soshiro realize it was actually the suit's tail that was severed, revealing that it had defended Soshiro. No. 10 encouraged Soshiro to fight back and do what they love most together, even if it killed them both. As No. 10 spoke in Soshiro's subconscious, he realized that he was spurred to go on and improve himself in life becuase he found sword-fighting fun. Having found his ultimate resolve, he grabs more backup katana and prepares for one final clash with No. 12. Having embraced his true reason for fighting, Soshiro is able to connect with No. 10 and unleash 100% of the suit's combat power. With the help of No. 10's tail, Soshiro grabbed a third swords and invented a new technique on the spot, consisting of twelve consecutive strikes that exposed No. 12's core. The Daikaiju was able to adapt and block the final strike that would hit its core, but Soshiro shot No. 10's tail in the air behind No. 12, allowing the third blade to stab the enemy's core. Despite hitting the core, Soshiro watches No. 12 try to continue fighting despite its fatal injury. Fortunately, its core breaks down before it can attack again, but as it dies, the Vice-Captain applauds the kaiju's incredible strength before collapsing from exhaustion himself. After scolding No. 10 for wanting to fight the other officers again, he remembers that Ashiro has to face the last identified Kaiju standing. The Last Wave Arc After Mina managed to ending the Second Wave with the neutralization of Kaiju No. 14, Soshiro gladly listened to the news. When, seconds later, Kaiju No. 9 appeared in front of Mina in Tachikawa, First Division's Kurusu announced to everyone nearby, with Soshiro rushing towards her.

General Information

Name: Soshiro Hoshina

Origin: Kaiju No. 8

First Appearance: Kaiju No. 8 Chapter 4 (Manga), Kaiju No. 8 Episode 1 (Anime, as a cameo), Kaiju No. 8 Episode 3 (Official Appearance)

Company: Shonen Jump (Manga Company), Production I.G (Anime studio)

Creator: Naoya Matsumoto (For the original series), Kentaro Hidano (For Kaiju No. 8 B-Side)

Sex: Male

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Pronouns: He/Him

Age: Unknown

'Birthday: November 21st

Homeworld: Earth

Residence: Japan

Story Role: Supporting Protagonist, Soldier, Officer, Hero

Classification: Member of the Third Division

Species: Human

State of Being: Regular

Physiology: Humanoid Physiology

Occupation: Member of Third Division Defense Force

Ranking: Vice Captain of Third Division Defense Force

Affiliations: Division Defense Force

Enemies: Kaiju (Yoju, Honju, Daikaiju, & Identified Kaiju)

Height: 171 cm

Status: Alive

Alignment: Neutral Good (Soshiro is a member of the Third Division Defense Force where he wants to protect people and his officers. Noted by Kafka that he acts strict but he's always been the kindest person around)

Protection Level: Metropolitan Protector (A member of the Defense Force, who protects society from Kaijus, that are threats to entire cities)

Codex Statistics

Key: Defense Suit | Number Weapons 10 Suit

Tier: 9-C physically, Up to 7-B with Defense Suit | 9-C physically, Up to 7-B with Weapons Number 10, Higher with Reactive Power Level

Cardinality: Finite

Dimensionality: 3-D

Attack Potency: Peak Human level physically (The defense force suit reads one's body measurements and assimilates with their form and muscle fibers to unleash combat power into them, causing their physical strength to multiply, though the amount of power varies on the person themself, thus making anyone that can use them superior physically to Pre-Training Kafka Hibino, where he was unable to draw any power from his defense suit, being the first person to draw zero percent from the suit, where Kafka made working out part of his regular routine and does hard larbor every day which should make his running level around here, and was able to kick Reno Ichikawa out of the way of a kaiju attack, sending him flying), Up to City level with Defense Suit (Noted that captains and vice captains have the most combat power, making him second to Mina Ashiro having an unleashed combat power of 92 percent, making him superior to Kikoru Shinomiya who while not stronger then, she was able to harm and cut apart Kaiju No. 9, who noted he was much stronger since last time and that he was ready to kill Kaiju No. 8, who utilizing all of his power, just from jumping he caused the entire city to crack from impact) | Peak Human level physically, Up to City level with Weapons Number 10 (Equipped with Weapon Numbers 10 giving him the strength of Kaiju No. 10, where it's noted that an unleashed combat power of 77 percent already reaches numbers rivalling the full release when wearing the normal defense force suit), Higher with Reactive Power Level (During his fight with Kaiju No. 10, he learned that his reason for fighting was purely due to swinging swords being fun allowing him to increase his combat level to 97 percent and then up to 100 percent)

Durability: Peak Human level physically, City level with Defense Suit | Peak Human level physically, Up to City level with Weapons Number 10, Higher with Reactive Power Level

Striking Strength: Peak Human Class physically, City Class with Defense Suit | Peak Human Class physically, Up to City Class with Weapons Number 10, Higher with Reactive Power Level

Lifting Strength: Peak Human physically (Defense force soldiers participate in daily weight lifting training), At least Class K with Defense Suit (Superior to Human Post-Training Kafka Hibino, who even at 1 percent he can easily rip through and dismantle a kaiju's flesh, where Kaiju can be around an estimated size of 150 meters be shown to be this size) | Peak Human physically, At least Class K with Weapons Number 10, Higher with Reactive Power Level

Travel Speed: Peak Human physically (Comparable to the group of prodigies, as his combat power far surpasses theirs, who can easily outrun Kafka Hibino, who made working out part of his regular routine and does hard larbor every day which should make his running level around here), Massively Hypersonic with Defense Suit (Was moving so fast that a Kaiju Kafka noted he was moving so fast along with his movements being inhuman) | Peak Human physically, Massively Hypersonic with Weapons Number 10 (Superior to his initial combat level and should be comparable to Iharu Furuhashi, who has a combat power is 88 percent, who moved so fast he saved Minase from a blast before she could even process she's been rescued, which got these results), Higher with Reactive Power Level

Combat Speed: Peak Human physically, Massively Hypersonic with Defense Suit (Noted when he initially fought Kaiju No. 8 that he was trying to gauge its abilities and didn't go all out from the start, meaning even while holding back he moved so fast that Kafka Hibino didn't even see his blades move, was moving so fast that a Kaiju Kafka noted he was moving so fast along with his movements being inhuman, where Kaiju Kafka can tag Kaiju No. 9, who can dodge amplified bullets, and deflect several amplified bullets) | Peak Human physically, Massively Hypersonic with Weapons Number 10, Higher with Reactive Power Level

Reaction Speed: Peak Human physically, Massively Hypersonic with Defense Suit | Peak Human physically, Massively Hypersonic with Weapons Number 10, Higher with Reactive Power Level

Stamina: Peak Human (Defense Force soldiers are able to constantly fight at full power for over 10 minutes before they start overloading)

Range: Standard Melee Range, Extended Melee Range with Bladed Weapons

Intelligence: Gifted (Comes from a long line of kaiju slayers dating back to the muromachi period, with him being more skilled with a blade then a gun. Able to cut perfectly in the gaps of a kaiju's shell with precision, using it as a diverison to cut off the monsters multiple limbs. Could perfectly re-enact his battle with Kaiju No. 8, correcting the mistakes he made during the battle. Noted that even as a kid his blade skills would laud him as a prodigy in the edo period. Noted that the more he sparred with his older brother, the more he started rapidly closing the gap between them to where he's a prodigy with the blade that stands above everyone in the hoshina family-past or present. Fought against Kaiju No. 12 who was specifically tailored to counter his double bladed style, and later kept adapting to his other blade styles and ultimately won after a long and hard fight)

---

Powers and Techniques

Martial Arts (Soshiro uses the hand to hand martial arts of "squadron-style combat technique" which was based on long-standing kaiju-slaying combat maneuvers) & Weapon Mastery (Blade Mastery; The Defense Force members are trained in kendo along with other forms of martial arts including martial arts such as judo. Comes from a long line of kaiju slayers dating back to the muromachi period, with him being more skilled with a blade then a gun), Accelerated Development (Battle; Physical Stats & Abilities; Soshiro is among the very rare person that goes beyond most officers who close out their careers with combat powers topping out at 20 or 30 percent)

Superhuman Physical Characteristics (The defense force's suits are bioweapons embedded with kaiju cells and muscle fibers, the higher one's unleashed combat power, the more capable they are of forming a strong enough link with those components to draw out more power), Acrobatics (Defense force suits allow the user to use various types of parkour allowing them to jump over cars, bounce off of walls, along with leaping high enough to leap above kaiju of this size), Information Analysis, Power Bestowal, Fusionism & Statistics Amplification (The defense force suit reads one's body measurements and assimilates with their form and muscle fibers to unleash combat power into them, causing their physical strength to multiply, though the amount of power varies on the person themself. The suits strength also allows them to lift the weapons they hold casually where one with 0 percent of the suits power can barely lift the guns), Forcefield Creation (The defense suits can activate a shield to protect their wearer from attacks, the wearer can focus the shield into a singular point, defending them from attacks that would reach the insides of their body such as their heart), Empowerment (The unleashed combat power allows one to empower the force of the shots from the weapons they use), Healing (High-Low; The suit's kaiju muscle fibers are able to bind wounds made as long as they're not fatal, allowing it to stop any bleeding).

Resistance to Extreme Temperatures (Defense force suits can protect the user from super-high temperature steams, along with protect them from the freezing cold energy emitted from the Kaiju No. 6 suit), Acid Manipulation (Defense Force suits protect the wearer from the insides of a kaiju, where the insides of Kaiju are acidic and require special suits to protect a wearer. The suit can take the highly acidic saliva from a fully matured kaiju)

All previous powers and abilities to a greater extent, Multiple Personalities (Multiple Organisms; Kaiju No. 10 is connected with Hoshina in this suit, allowing where he will command No. 10 to defend him from attacks while he attacks head on, although if Hoshina is not fully in sync with Kaiju No. 10's thoughts, they will not be able to properly link, causing his combat power to greatly drop in the process), Body Control (Kaiju No. 10 is easily able to control the mechanical tail outfitted with the suit), Reactive Power Level (During his fight with Kaiju No. 10, he learned that his reason for fighting was purely due to swinging swords being fun allowing him to increase his combat level to 97 percent and then up to 100 percent)

Alternate Breathing (Defense force members are equipped with a gas mask, allowing them to protect themsels from poisons along with super-high-temperature steam), Status Effect Inducement & Light Manipulation (Defense force members are issued with a stun grenade to overwhelm the hyperdeveloped senses of a youji), Ice Manipulation (All defense force personnel are equipped with a a unisocket that houses kaiju organs with special attributes or secretions from said organs, with burst rounds being the most common, with freeze rounds allowing one to slow down the kaiju's movements while fighting them), Anti Kaiju Burst Rounds (All defense force personnel are equipped with a a unisocket that houses kaiju organs with special attributes or secretions from said organs, with burst rounds being the most common), Electricity Manipulation (Defense Force personnel are also equipped with conductor rounds allowing for an electrical field that makes it harder for a kaiju to move), Damage Boost (Defense force personnels firearms can have their piercing power increased)

Deconstruction (Macroscopic; Able to cut an enemy down to extremely small pieces)

---

Equipment

Combat Suit

Kikoru wears the usual combat suit on the battlefield. 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 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. Kikoru no longer uses her combat suit after getting her Numbers Weapon 4 Suit.

Gas Mask

A gas mask that naturally comes with every Defene Force member, it allows them to be in highly toxic environments just fine.

Rifle

Typical equipment for Defense Force soldiers, the rifles are fitted with uni-socket rounds for taking down Kaiju, and the rifles are directly empowered by the force of a shot depending on someone's combat power. Though Soshiro himself does not use these as he is weak when it comes to firearms.

Uni-socket

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, magazines carrying the power-bestowing organs of kaiju, known as uni-organ. This allows the bullets to recreate the kaiju's powers. Some known types are:

• Burst Rounds: These were collected from a honju that emerged on August 4, 1970.
• Freeze Rounds: These were collected from a honju that emerged on February 19, 1988.
• Conductor Rounds: These were made to create electrical fields, making it harder for Kaiju that could naturally dodge their bullets to dodge them.

Stun Grenades

Typical issued stun grenades given to Defense Force Soldiers, they are able to use these to overload the hyper-senses of the kaiju. Soshiro is seen using one against a kaiju in the B-Side manga.

Numbers Weapon 10

Soshiro's personal Numbers weapon, provided by Izumo Tech, is a special combat suit crafted from the body of Kaiju No. 10. This suit has light-purple scale-like armor with green outlines, a long mechanical tail, and No. 10's signature eye in the middle of the chest plate. It is the first Numbers weapon in the history of the Defense Force that has a will of it's own. Making it harder for Soshiro to control it without him directly syncing his thoughts and motivation with Kaiju No. 10.

Double Bladed Swords

Marked SW-2033 and provided by Izumo Tech, Soshiro's personal weapons are two swords. The blades are sharp and durable enough to slice through incredibly tough kaiju like Kaiju No. 8 and Kaiju No. 10. He is shown to have multiple swords as a back up.

Katana

Marked SW-1023, Soshiro uses a single katana as a secret weapon, despite this being a weapon usually wielded by his older brother. The blade is sharp enough to easily slice through Kaiju No. 12. He is shown to have multiple katanas as a back up.

---

Notable Techniques

Highly Unleashed Combat Power

As a vice-captain, Soshiro is capable of using an extremely high amount of his combat suit's power. His maximum unleashed combat power in a standard Defense Force combat suit is 92%, however abusing the suit's power will cause him to overheat. While wearing Numbers Weapon 10, he is capable of a "Full Release" which allows him to use 100% of his suit's power.

Hoshina Style

• 

  First Form: Lucidity Slash

• 

  Second Form: Wind Pierce

• 

  Third Form: Reversal

• 

  Fifth Form: Mist Strike

• 

  Sixth Form: Strata Strike

• 

  Seventh Form: Duodecimal Strike

Soshiro's unleashed combat power when it comes to using firearms is low, so he prefers close-ranged sword fighting. Unlike other Defense Force officers, Soshiro uses his family's unique fighting style, known as Hoshina Style. His extraordinary mastery in swordsmanship allows him to brutally kill a kaiju before Kafka's eyes without the latter noticing any movement from him. After many battles, Soshiro even managed to created a completely new form mid-fight against Kaiju No. 12, showing how much his skills with the dual style Sword-Slay technique has improved over the years. Soshiro's field of expertise with his style is the Sword-Slay Technique, used with a Dual-Blade form. His skills and power easily allow him to fight toe-to-toe with kaiju of Identified class, like No. 8, No. 10 and No. 12. He also proved to use the Quick-Slash Technique and the Single-Blade form with remarkable ability, despite the latter being Soichiro's specialty.

---

Other

Standard Tactics: Soshiro uses his blades to cut at the opponent, showing to be able to cut at any point of armor where there's an opening, along with this he moves at extremely fast speeds.

Weaknesses: Using the suit with its limiter removed for over 10 minutes will cause overheating causing the wearer to be weakened and induce physical agony such as bleeding. Number Weapon Suits limiter time is instead 15 minutes before they start to sync stress at level 3. If Hoshina is not fully in sync with Kaiju No. 10's thoughts, they will not be able to properly link, causing his combat power to greatly drop in the process.

Miscellaneous Feats

• The suits strength also allows the defense force to lift the weapons they hold casually whereas Kafka with 0 percent of the suits power can barely lift the guns.

Trivia

• Soshiro likes reading, coffee, Montblancs, and simple folks.
• Noted to act sort of as a detective who closes in on the truth .
• Soshiro seems to be better at videogames than Gen Narumi.
• When designing Soshiro's SW-2033 swords, Matsumoto was undecided between a combat knife or a ninja sword.
• Soshiro ranked #1 in the first character popularity polls.

Battle Records

3-0-1

• Kaiju No. 10 - Fight
  • Conditions: Mina had help from Soshiro Hoshina and Kikoru Shinomiya.
  • Location: Tachikawa Base
  • Note: As Mina needed both of them for exposing the core of the kaiju, she would've very likely lost without their help. Soshiro himself was ultimately overpowered by Kaiju No. 10 and merely fought him long enough until Mina could come.

• Kaiju No. 12 - Fight
  • Conditions: None.
  • Location: Unknown Area in Japan

• Kafka Hibino - Fight
  • Condition: Kafka and Soshiro used no equipment or transformations and fought with their bare fist.
  • Location: Ryunei Shrine

None.

• Kafka Hibino - Fight
  • Conditions: Kafka was holding back while Soshiro was fighting to kill.
  • Location: Unknown Area in Japan
  • Note: During the fight Kafka was holding back, with the minute he got serious he was able to overpower Soshiro Hoshina and escape, with this in mind if Kafka was to fight fully serious at this state, Hoshina would've surely lost.