He does have a trick he's better at than your average Black Court novice - and which he will not admit to using - and that's mind reading. When he's calm and able to focus, he can predict moves before they happen, compensating for his poorer reflexes.
Thus, he's confident she's not going to pull anything tricky just yet. He'll let her whack at him and block it to get the feel of it before he has a go at whacking her back with the same downward strike. Not as fast, similar in grace.
no subject
He does have a trick he's better at than your average Black Court novice - and which he will not admit to using - and that's mind reading. When he's calm and able to focus, he can predict moves before they happen, compensating for his poorer reflexes.
Thus, he's confident she's not going to pull anything tricky just yet. He'll let her whack at him and block it to get the feel of it before he has a go at whacking her back with the same downward strike. Not as fast, similar in grace.