Jade doesn't fire yet. He studies, and from his perspective as a southpaw, the picture is wrong.
With him settling with his right foot forward, he sees Ryoma isn't square up to him. Just a shoulder turned in, a narrow line of torso. Ryoma's chest is hidden, the right side barely visible.
From this angle, the usual lanes are gone. The body is sealed except for the left ribs, and the head is no longer sitting on the line his rear hand wants to travel.
His left, the power hand, will take farther distance to travel, easier to read. And if he reaches with the right, even a little too far, Ryoma's right from below is waiting again.
Ryoma gives him nothing straight on. He veers left, outside Jade's right. And then his left hand, from hanging low, flickering once, twice.
Wsht. Wsht.
The jabs snap out fast and light, more signal than strike. Jade lifts his guard and blocks them cleanly.
Dug. Dug.
