Nikko couldn't help but laugh when Jaya called out to him and splashed him. He didn't bother bending the water away from him, and allowed it to his his body. He simply floated in the water, allowing it to cover all of his body with the exception of his head. His head turned to her as she spoke again, and shrugged at her answer. All of those things were really cool, but healing required a lot of training, as only a few people could heal without it, blood bending was disturbing and disgusting, and when you're in the desert, there are hardly any plants, no moisture, and only so much sweat. He could also bend clouds and steam to his will with enough training. He did have to get more creative with his bending, but he was thinking about how little it could be used in the desert. 

"Yeah, but you can use your bending a whole lot more in a desert than I can. Sure there are a lot more uses and variations I guess, but you always have your bending at your disposal, even when facing the opposite element. Water benders don't have that kind of thing. While I guess we're the most free when it comes to different bending types, we're the most restricted when it comes to... availability, I guess."