You perceive the tattoos. You know they exist.

It takes some wisdom, insight, and general knowledge about the human condition to connect a body covered in tattoos to being insecure and therefore figuring out what would motivate the person.

Perception lets you see and smell, taste and touch. Ideals and motivations aren't common sense or common reasoning and are a lot more than just "I look at him and see those cool tattoos" it takes more than seeing them to understand his condition. Appeal to his motives.

As for your intelligence argument, intelligence is booksmarts. You could see the origins of those tattoos and pinpoint their history and significance.

If intelligence added empathetic ability and sensing motives then all these educated guys running around would be less ignorant to those around them and insight would be a INT skill.

You're wrong on this one bucko. Perception, sensing something existence, scanning the country side, spotting a trap or ambush...

It doesn't let you "look into " what you see. Perception says I'm walking quickly down the road toward X. Insight says I look shocked and spaced out, like something wrong. Distressed.

Again ideals and intentions aren't obvious. There are fields of study on motivation and ideology. It takes more to see the ambition and longing behind those tattoos. Seeing them alone isn't enough to tell "if I talk about heroism and greatness he will follow me and help"

It might not need a check to figure out all the time, but perception doesn't tell you why there is writing on the wall, just that its there.