Chapter 30: Book

Soon, the helicopter slowly landed on the helipad of a military base.

Uchiha Fugaku followed the officer out of the helicopter; the moment his feet touched the ground, he sensed the heavy atmosphere around him.

He scanned the area outside the helipad and saw rows of fully armed soldiers standing ready, with tanks and missile vehicles neatly arranged around the perimeter.

Fugaku's expression turned slightly grave. Although these weapons had strange shapes, he could sense the dangerous aura they emitted.

"Please follow me."

The officer gestured for Fugaku to follow, and the two walked briskly across the helipad toward the depths of the base. Along the way, Fugaku noticed many soldiers casting curious and wary glances at him.

Soon, they arrived before a concealed entrance. The officer quickly entered a string of numbers on the password lock beside the door; with a soft click, the heavy metal door slowly slid open, revealing an elevator.

Fugaku followed the officer into the elevator, and the elevator door closed silently behind them.

At this moment, a sudden feeling of weightlessness struck him, as if his whole body were suspended in midair.

At this moment, Uchiha Fugaku could clearly feel the elevator plunging downward at a speed far beyond the ordinary, probably having reached a depth of several hundred meters.

The officer seemed to notice Fugaku's surprise and said, "The base is built underground. To ensure work efficiency, the elevator's speed has been specially adjusted."

After plummeting at high speed for a moment, the speed gradually slowed until it finally came to a complete stop.

With a crisp "ding," the elevator door slowly slid open, and a metal corridor appeared before Uchiha Fugaku's eyes.

On both sides of the corridor were rows of closed metal doors. The officer quickly walked to one door and entered a string of numbers on the password lock beside it. With a "beep," the door lock clicked open.

Fugaku's gaze swept around the room. It was a small room, with all four walls made of metal and not a single window. In the center of the room were placed a simple bed and a table, with no other furnishings.

"This is your temporary resting place. General Stark will come to see you soon," the officer said to Fugaku, turning around, his tone carrying a hint of respect.

Uchiha Fugaku looked around, his brow slightly furrowed. Although nothing was apparent on the surface, he keenly felt that the room was filled with an unsettling aura everywhere. As if countless eyes were spying in the dark, it made one's skin crawl.

He narrowed his eyes, and the Three Tomoe Sharingan appeared once more. As his gaze swept across every corner of the room, those originally hidden details instantly had nowhere to hide.

Only to see that every corner was installed with tiny instruments, flashing red dots, all aimed at the center of the room.

"Surveillance equipment?" Fugaku silently mused in his heart. Obviously, his every move was being secretly monitored.

But what concerned him more was the structure of the room itself. Hard metal walls, a cramped enclosed space, combined with various signs of being buried deep underground, all indicated that this place was specially "prepared" for him.

"Is it to restrict my use of Susanoo?" Fugaku frowned slightly, but if it really came to a fight, such a room probably couldn't trap him.

Just as the officer turned around to leave, Fugaku suddenly called out to stop him: "Wait."

The officer's footsteps paused, he turned his head, and a look of confusion appeared on his face: "Is there anything else?"

"Could you give me a few books?" Fugaku asked calmly, his tone carrying a hint of nonchalance: "While waiting, I need to find something to pass the time."

The officer frowned slightly, seemingly not expecting such a request: "Books? What kind of books do you want to read?" Fugaku's lips curled slightly, a faint smile playing at the corner of his mouth: "Nothing special, just some ordinary reading material, to kill some time."

To quickly understand the situation of a strange world, starting with books was undoubtedly the most convenient and effective way.

At this moment, the communication device on his body suddenly rang. Accompanied by a burst of static, a low voice came from it: "Give him whatever he needs, as much as possible."

The officer's body stiffened noticeably, seemingly a bit surprised by the superior's instruction. But he quickly regained his composure and bowed slightly to Fugaku: "Alright, I will bring you some books as soon as possible. If you have any other needs, please feel free to mention them."

Soon, stacks of books were delivered to Uchiha Fugaku's room, neatly piled on the table.

Fugaku casually picked up a book titled Ten Thousand Whys and opened the cover. Although the dense text on the pages was very unfamiliar to him, as soon as his gaze swept over them, the meanings contained within automatically appeared in his mind.

With the aid of the Sharingan, he flipped through the pages at a speed far beyond that of an ordinary person.

The contents of the book seemed to be entirely scanned by a high-speed scanner, every word clearly imprinted in his mind.

Fugaku's gaze flowed across the pages, his fingers constantly turning them, the pages rustling nonstop.

In the blink of an eye, book after book was quickly "read" by him, and the stack of books on the table visibly grew shorter.

Closing the last book, Fugaku slowly exhaled and fell into deep thought. Through these books, he had initially understood the basic situation of this world.

"A world of technology and machinery without chakra, truly amazing," he murmured, his voice low and slightly hoarse.

At this moment, Fugaku recalled the social systems and humanistic ideas described in the books, and couldn't help but feel a hint of shock.

Although the books only introduced these contents in fragments, it was enough for him to realize that this world was far more advanced than the Ninja World in terms of thought and institutions.

In the world of ninjas, almost all power was held by the Kage. Although nominally, the Kage was responsible to the villagers and the Elders, in reality, the Kage's power was almost unrestricted, and he could almost serve for life.

This system had many drawbacks. Once an incompetent or ambitious leader appeared, the entire village could fall into disaster.

Fugaku's mind involuntarily conjured up the unsettling news recently coming from Kirigakure.

It was said that they had begun implementing a policy called "Blood Mist," simply inhumane.

And this book before him describing the course of historical development opened a brand new window of perspective for him.

The book recorded that this world had once been in a similar stage. But with the progress of technology and the increase of productivity, people's living standards gradually rose, and their consciousness was liberated, finally giving birth to the current system.

"The economic base determines the superstructure, and the superstructure reacts upon the economic base," Fugaku murmured, recalling a passage from the book.

Ninjas possessed powerful productivity, yet fought year after year, with wars between villages almost never stopping. In such an environment, people found it hard to have the energy to develop the economy and improve their lives.

"Truly ironic," Fugaku murmured, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness and emotion, "Without supernatural powers, they have more advanced institutions, while we, though possessing great power, are still trapped in the vortex of war, unable to extricate ourselves."

(Chapter End)