[He answered with a slight nod, trying to focus. How'd he done this so easily last time?]
[...if he thought about it, that was an easy question to answer. The problem was that he thought and overthought every breath and action he took. And when he'd sparred with Polnareff, that brilliantly strategic mind had watched Polnareff refuse to take attacks his opponent was open for, let himself be put at a disadvantage even while Kakyoin kept pushing without hesitation.]
['You say you're fine, but I saw you nearly cut in half not a week ago, Kakyoin, I can't just--']
[He knew why. He understood. But it pissed him off enough to shove thought into the backseat and let frustration become his driving force.]
[Shut up. Shut up, shut up, don't you dare look at me like I'm going to break.]
[If he tried to bring up that bitter frustration, maybe it would be that straightforward again. Maybe he could take a few slow, measured breaths even as his grip on Hierophant curled into something tense and white-knuckled. Breathe, focus, forget how understandable Polnareff's hesitation was and focus on how goddamn angry he was about it.]
[Hamon sparked down his arm and through his hand--Hierophant was no different than his own body, so letting it continue through the coil he held and arcing along the tripwires behind him took only a minute's concentration and anger along with some careful breaths to match it.]
no subject
[...if he thought about it, that was an easy question to answer. The problem was that he thought and overthought every breath and action he took. And when he'd sparred with Polnareff, that brilliantly strategic mind had watched Polnareff refuse to take attacks his opponent was open for, let himself be put at a disadvantage even while Kakyoin kept pushing without hesitation.]
['You say you're fine, but I saw you nearly cut in half not a week ago, Kakyoin, I can't just--']
[He knew why. He understood. But it pissed him off enough to shove thought into the backseat and let frustration become his driving force.]
[Shut up. Shut up, shut up, don't you dare look at me like I'm going to break.]
[If he tried to bring up that bitter frustration, maybe it would be that straightforward again. Maybe he could take a few slow, measured breaths even as his grip on Hierophant curled into something tense and white-knuckled. Breathe, focus, forget how understandable Polnareff's hesitation was and focus on how goddamn angry he was about it.]
[Hamon sparked down his arm and through his hand--Hierophant was no different than his own body, so letting it continue through the coil he held and arcing along the tripwires behind him took only a minute's concentration and anger along with some careful breaths to match it.]