Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-25908228-20141222101442/@comment-6697950-20141222144026

As we've said, both of Kirito and Asuna are on the same level and it has never been made clear which one of them is stronger.

And yes, lovey dovey time sure helps with keeping your skills high. Just because he still plays the game doesn't mean that he puts in that much effort in keeping his skills in check. XaXa on the other hand had nothing better to do.

Really, you're bringing up Nobuyuki as an example? Do we really need to explain why he's not really a good example? As for the fight with Kyouji, Kazuto was caught off guard by an aggressive psychopath and before he could react, Kyouji seemingly injected him with a drug that would have killed him. Knowing that, I'm thinking that the thought that he was going to die made him stop fighting back. So, think of it this way, if you were attacked by ferocious animal, would you be on the defensive or offensive? I personally believe that the majority would be on the defensive. And the defensive was what led to Kyouji getting the opening he needed.

And yes, if you were paying attention, she did explain that even in the anime. In episode 20 to be more specific.