Rapping in code was one of the distinct features of East Coast emcees back then though breh
I remember when I first started getting into South and West Coast music
One of the first things that threw me off was how I was able to follow along exactly to what they were saying and get it on first listen (outside of 40 Water)
I was accustomed to listening closely and rewinding lines/verses/songs to catch those little nuggets
I say all that to say that IMO the difference in approach was more so due to a stylistic difference and not who was more gangsta with their shyt
I feel you but you gotta look at the timeline and ask yourself why that approach wasn't as effective with the audience at that time where the west coast was dominant.

If you gon diss him, diss him. But Pac comes out and says their name and he's just paranoid and mad at the entire east coast rap scene.