diff --git a/tui_gateway/server.py b/tui_gateway/server.py
index 32bac4ffa..49cd9660b 100644
--- a/tui_gateway/server.py
+++ b/tui_gateway/server.py
@@ -455,21 +455,14 @@ def _write_config_key(key_path: str, value):
     _save_cfg(cfg)
 
 
-# Legacy configs stored display.tui_statusbar as a bool; a short-lived
-# intermediate wrote 'on'. Both forms map to 'top' — the inline position
-# above the input where the bar originally lived — so users don't need to
-# migrate by hand.
+_STATUSBAR_MODES = frozenset({"off", "top", "bottom"})
+
+
 def _coerce_statusbar(raw) -> str:
-    if raw is True:
-        return "top"
     if raw is False:
         return "off"
-    if isinstance(raw, str):
-        s = raw.strip().lower()
-        if s == "on":
-            return "top"
-        if s in {"off", "top", "bottom"}:
-            return s
+    if isinstance(raw, str) and (s := raw.strip().lower()) in _STATUSBAR_MODES:
+        return s
     return "top"
 
 
@@ -2535,17 +2528,18 @@ def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
 
     if key == "statusbar":
         raw = str(value or "").strip().lower()
-        cfg0 = _load_cfg()
-        d0 = cfg0.get("display") if isinstance(cfg0.get("display"), dict) else {}
+        d0 = _load_cfg().get("display") or {}
         current = _coerce_statusbar(d0.get("tui_statusbar", "top"))
+
         if raw in ("", "toggle"):
             nv = "top" if current == "off" else "off"
         elif raw == "on":
             nv = "top"
-        elif raw in ("off", "top", "bottom"):
+        elif raw in _STATUSBAR_MODES:
             nv = raw
         else:
             return _err(rid, 4002, f"unknown statusbar value: {value}")
+
         _write_config_key("display.tui_statusbar", nv)
         return _ok(rid, {"key": key, "value": nv})
 
diff --git a/ui-tui/packages/hermes-ink/src/ink/wrap-text.ts b/ui-tui/packages/hermes-ink/src/ink/wrap-text.ts
index c0b95df08..e8290feac 100644
--- a/ui-tui/packages/hermes-ink/src/ink/wrap-text.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/packages/hermes-ink/src/ink/wrap-text.ts
@@ -50,17 +50,8 @@ export default function wrapText(text: string, maxWidth: number, wrapType: Style
     })
   }
 
-  // Char-granularity wrap: break at exact column boundaries regardless of
-  // whitespace. Used for text inputs where the cursor position must track
-  // the wrap boundary deterministically — word-wrap's whitespace-preferring
-  // reshuffle causes visible cursor flicker as each keystroke can push a
-  // word across a line break.
   if (wrapType === 'wrap-char') {
-    return wrapAnsi(text, maxWidth, {
-      trim: false,
-      hard: true,
-      wordWrap: false
-    })
+    return wrapAnsi(text, maxWidth, { trim: false, hard: true, wordWrap: false })
   }
 
   if (wrapType === 'wrap-trim') {
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/app/slash/commands/core.ts b/ui-tui/src/app/slash/commands/core.ts
index a418e28ac..904882c21 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/app/slash/commands/core.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/app/slash/commands/core.ts
@@ -310,23 +310,18 @@ export const coreCommands: SlashCommand[] = [
     name: 'statusbar',
     run: (arg, ctx) => {
       const mode = arg.trim().toLowerCase()
-      const current = ctx.ui.statusBar
+      const toggle: StatusBarMode = ctx.ui.statusBar === 'off' ? 'top' : 'off'
 
-      // 'on' is a legacy alias for 'top' — the inline position above the
-      // input where the bar originally lived. No-arg / `toggle` flips
-      // visibility and defaults to 'top' when reappearing.
       const next: null | StatusBarMode =
-        mode === '' || mode === 'toggle'
-          ? current === 'off'
-            ? 'top'
-            : 'off'
+        !mode || mode === 'toggle'
+          ? toggle
           : mode === 'on' || mode === 'top'
             ? 'top'
             : mode === 'off' || mode === 'bottom'
               ? mode
               : null
 
-      if (next === null) {
+      if (!next) {
         return ctx.transcript.sys('usage: /statusbar [on|off|top|bottom|toggle]')
       }
 
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/app/useConfigSync.ts b/ui-tui/src/app/useConfigSync.ts
index a8f64c3a5..f50dcbd10 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/app/useConfigSync.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/app/useConfigSync.ts
@@ -16,17 +16,12 @@ import { patchUiState } from './uiStore.js'
 
 const STATUSBAR_MODES = new Set<StatusBarMode>(['bottom', 'off', 'top'])
 
-// Legacy configs stored tui_statusbar as a bool; the short-lived 4-mode
-// variant wrote 'on'. Both map to 'top' (inline above the input) — the
-// original feature's default — so users keep their preference without
-// manual migration.
-export const normalizeStatusBar = (raw: unknown): StatusBarMode => {
-  if (raw === false) return 'off'
-  if (raw === true || raw == null || raw === 'on') return 'top'
-  if (typeof raw === 'string' && STATUSBAR_MODES.has(raw as StatusBarMode)) return raw as StatusBarMode
-
-  return 'top'
-}
+export const normalizeStatusBar = (raw: unknown): StatusBarMode =>
+  raw === false
+    ? 'off'
+    : typeof raw === 'string' && STATUSBAR_MODES.has(raw as StatusBarMode)
+      ? (raw as StatusBarMode)
+      : 'top'
 
 const MTIME_POLL_MS = 5000
 
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/app/useInputHandlers.ts b/ui-tui/src/app/useInputHandlers.ts
index bb88383ae..07f241cb5 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/app/useInputHandlers.ts
+++ b/ui-tui/src/app/useInputHandlers.ts
@@ -378,10 +378,7 @@ export function useInputHandlers(ctx: InputHandlerContext): InputHandlerResult {
       return cActions.openEditor()
     }
 
-    // Shift-Tab toggles per-session yolo without submitting a turn — mirrors
-    // Claude Code's in-place dangerously-approve toggle. Slash /yolo keeps
-    // working for discoverability; this just skips the inference round-trip
-    // when you only want to flip the flag mid-flow (blitz #5 sub-item 11).
+    // shift-tab flips yolo without spending a turn (claude-code parity)
     if (key.shift && key.tab && !cState.completions.length) {
       return void gateway
         .rpc<ConfigSetResponse>('config.set', { key: 'yolo', session_id: live.sid })
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/components/appChrome.tsx b/ui-tui/src/components/appChrome.tsx
index 439afd962..b9b5e9450 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/components/appChrome.tsx
+++ b/ui-tui/src/components/appChrome.tsx
@@ -191,7 +191,7 @@ export function StatusRule({
   const leftWidth = Math.max(12, cols - cwdLabel.length - 3)
 
   return (
-    <Box flexShrink={0} height={1}>
+    <Box height={1}>
       <Box flexShrink={1} width={leftWidth}>
         <Text color={t.color.bronze} wrap="truncate-end">
           {'─ '}
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/components/appLayout.tsx b/ui-tui/src/components/appLayout.tsx
index 171ee27f5..c96960ac8 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/components/appLayout.tsx
+++ b/ui-tui/src/components/appLayout.tsx
@@ -216,13 +216,7 @@ const ComposerPane = memo(function ComposerPane({
             </Box>
 
             <Box flexGrow={1} position="relative">
-              {/*
-                Subtract the NoSelect paddingX={1} (2 cols total) and the
-                prompt-glyph column (pw) so cursorLayout agrees with the
-                width wrap-ansi actually uses at render time. Off-by-one/
-                two here manifests as the final letter flickering
-                in/out when a sentence crosses the wrap boundary.
-              */}
+              {/* subtract NoSelect paddingX={1} (2 cols) + pw so wrap-ansi and cursorLayout agree */}
               <TextInput
                 columns={Math.max(20, composer.cols - pw - 2)}
                 onChange={composer.updateInput}
@@ -271,12 +265,8 @@ const StatusRulePane = memo(function StatusRulePane({
     return null
   }
 
-  // 'top' sits inline above the input; give it one row of breathing
-  // space above so the transcript (or queue) doesn't butt directly
-  // against the status row. 'bottom' lives at the last row of the
-  // viewport so it needs no margin.
   return (
-    <Box flexShrink={0} marginTop={at === 'top' ? 1 : 0}>
+    <Box marginTop={at === 'top' ? 1 : 0}>
       <StatusRule
         bgCount={ui.bgTasks.size}
         busy={ui.busy}
@@ -318,18 +308,20 @@ export const AppLayout = memo(function AppLayout({
         </Box>
 
         {!overlay.agents && (
-          <PromptZone
-            cols={composer.cols}
-            onApprovalChoice={actions.answerApproval}
-            onClarifyAnswer={actions.answerClarify}
-            onSecretSubmit={actions.answerSecret}
-            onSudoSubmit={actions.answerSudo}
-          />
+          <>
+            <PromptZone
+              cols={composer.cols}
+              onApprovalChoice={actions.answerApproval}
+              onClarifyAnswer={actions.answerClarify}
+              onSecretSubmit={actions.answerSecret}
+              onSudoSubmit={actions.answerSudo}
+            />
+
+            <ComposerPane actions={actions} composer={composer} status={status} />
+
+            <StatusRulePane at="bottom" composer={composer} status={status} />
+          </>
         )}
-
-        {!overlay.agents && <ComposerPane actions={actions} composer={composer} status={status} />}
-
-        {!overlay.agents && <StatusRulePane at="bottom" composer={composer} status={status} />}
       </Box>
     </AlternateScreen>
   )
diff --git a/ui-tui/src/components/textInput.tsx b/ui-tui/src/components/textInput.tsx
index 4b6950cf5..d17631cfe 100644
--- a/ui-tui/src/components/textInput.tsx
+++ b/ui-tui/src/components/textInput.tsx
@@ -167,11 +167,8 @@ export function lineNav(s: string, p: number, dir: -1 | 1): null | number {
   return snapPos(s, Math.min(nextBreak + 1 + col, lineEnd))
 }
 
-// Cursor layout mirrors `wrap-ansi(text, cols, { wordWrap: false, hard: true })`
-// which is what `<Text wrap="wrap-char">` ends up feeding to the renderer.
-// Char-granularity wrap keeps wrap boundaries deterministic as the user
-// types — word-wrap's whitespace-preferring reshuffle causes the cursor
-// to flicker as each keystroke moves a word across a line break (blitz #9).
+// mirrors wrap-ansi(..., { wordWrap: false, hard: true }) so the declared
+// cursor lines up with what <Text wrap="wrap-char"> actually renders
 export function cursorLayout(value: string, cursor: number, cols: number) {
   const pos = Math.max(0, Math.min(cursor, value.length))
   const w = Math.max(1, cols)
@@ -205,11 +202,7 @@ export function cursorLayout(value: string, cursor: number, cols: number) {
     col += sw
   }
 
-  // The cursor renders as an inverted cell AFTER the character at `pos`
-  // (or as a standalone trailing cell when `pos === value.length`). If
-  // col has reached the wrap column, that cell overflows to the next row
-  // — match wrap-ansi's behavior so the declared cursor doesn't sit past
-  // the visual edge.
+  // trailing cursor-cell overflows to the next row at the wrap column
   if (col >= w) {
     line++
     col = 0