((OOC: Let's see if I've still got the will of the warrior in my RPing))
[center][b]((BIC))[/b][/center]

It was in that moment that Zack's focus fell squarely onto Seifer; all else faded into his periphery, and out of his concern. 

He tracked and metered the swaying of Seifer's hand, and the slight wobbling of his baton that came with it; Zack had often wondered how Seifer managed to compensate when making adjustments to his swings. For his own part, however, Zack remained still, yet relaxed enough that he wouldn't tense either. He maintained his own sense of rhythm, albeit through controlled breaths rather than movement of the body. [color=f26522]"Fine by me,"[/color] he retorted, agreeing to a quick one-point match. There was no sense dragging on a full match so soon before the tournament. While it meant getting less of a feel for Seifer's technique, it would also mean that Seifer would get that much less of a feel for what Zack had been working on. 

Almost immediately, Seifer made the opening move. Zack had expected so much, as Seifer was usually one to go on the offensive early on. From the year plus of training and observing matches, and recalling his loss in the previous year's tournament, he had come to expect a bag of tricks. Setting himself up for the lunge, Zack shifted his left foot back, and raised his bat up to align with his sternum. But had enough of a sense for Seifer's approach to know not to take the thrust at face value; he liked to feign his movements every so often. It was such a maneuver that had ultimately done Zack in the year before. 

Thus, he had been steadily adapting his own technique in the hopes of countering Seifer in that regard. In the past, his method had been to go on the defense. But that had come with the need to anticipate whether or no Seifer intended to follow through with a move, or to go with the fake out. This was often easier said than done. Rather than staying his position in attempting to block or parry, Zack coupled defense with evasion. Within the space he had come to expect the feign, he moved his bat as to deflect the potential jab. In the same motion he pivoted on one foot, offsetting himself to the side opposite Seifer's baton hand. 

Provided that his move created the opening he sought from it, he would follow up on his parrying motion with a swing towards Seifer's chest. 

In a best case scenario, all of this would land Zack an easy, early end to the match. At worst, Seifer may have read into it and adjusted accordingly. Zack hoped, at the very least, that his move would be enough to put Seifer on a defensive or evasive front, and give himself more control over the match.