diff --git a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.test.ts b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.test.ts
index 5c6776008b1..2b300bf8387 100644
--- a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.test.ts
+++ b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.test.ts
@@ -37,6 +37,7 @@ describe('mobile native chat image preview reconciliation', () => {
       pendingKey: 'pending-key',
       text: 'look at this',
       normalizedText: 'look at this',
+      imageCount: 1,
       baselineTailMessageId: null,
       deadline: null
     }
@@ -58,6 +59,7 @@ describe('mobile native chat image preview reconciliation', () => {
       pendingKey: 'pending-key',
       text: 'look here',
       normalizedText: 'look here',
+      imageCount: 1,
       baselineTailMessageId: null,
       deadline: null
     }
diff --git a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.ts b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.ts
index f07eaffd6a7..3f27a42f72a 100644
--- a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.ts
+++ b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile.ts
@@ -3,15 +3,12 @@ import {
   countImagePromptMarkers,
   hasImagePromptMarker,
   isImageSourceUserTurn,
+  nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount,
   nativeChatUserMessageMatchText,
+  nativeChatUserTextMatchText,
   normalizeImageTranscriptMessages,
-  normalizeNativeChatUserText,
   normalizedNativeChatUserMessageText
 } from './mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers'
-export {
-  normalizeNativeChatUserText as normalizeReconcileText,
-  normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback as normalizeReconcileTextWithLiteralFallback
-} from './mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers'
 
 /** An ack-lost ('unknown' outcome) send held until its transcript echo lands or
  *  the deadline surfaces the uncertainty. */
@@ -20,6 +17,7 @@ export type UnconfirmedSend = {
   pendingKey: string | null
   text: string
   normalizedText: string
+  imageCount: number
   baselineTailMessageId: string | null
   deadline: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null
 }
@@ -30,11 +28,15 @@ export function normalizedUserText(message: NativeChatMessage): string | null {
 
 export function countUserTextOccurrences(
   messages: readonly NativeChatMessage[],
-  text: string
+  text: string,
+  imageCount = 0
 ): number {
   let count = 0
   for (const message of messages) {
-    if (nativeChatUserMessageMatchText(message) === text) {
+    if (
+      nativeChatUserMessageMatchText(message) === text &&
+      nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount(message) >= imageCount
+    ) {
       count++
     }
   }
@@ -178,20 +180,24 @@ export function findLandedImagePreviewEchoes(
     if (!entry.images?.length) {
       continue
     }
-    const targetText = normalizeNativeChatUserText(entry.text)
+    const targetText = nativeChatUserTextMatchText(entry.text, true)
     const candidates = normalized.filter((message) => {
       if (message.role !== 'user') {
         return false
       }
+      const imageCount = nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount(message)
       if (targetText) {
-        return normalizedUserText(message) === targetText
+        return (
+          nativeChatUserMessageMatchText(message) === targetText &&
+          imageCount >= entry.images!.length
+        )
       }
-      const imageCount = message.blocks.filter(isImageRefBlock).length
+      const imageRefCount = message.blocks.filter(isImageRefBlock).length
       // Why: a marker-only echo proves delivery per marker, so a partially
       // rendered turn must not claim (and rebind) previews it cannot account for.
       return (
         message.blocks.length === 0 ||
-        imageCount >= entry.images!.length ||
+        imageRefCount >= entry.images!.length ||
         (countImagePromptMarkers(message) >= entry.images!.length &&
           normalizedUserText(message) === null)
       )
@@ -228,7 +234,10 @@ export function findLandedUnconfirmedSends(
   // (`[Image: source: …]` or no text) keys under '' so an empty-text send can
   // claim it.
   const messageIndexById = new Map<string, number>()
-  const userMessagesByText = new Map<string, Array<{ id: string; index: number }>>()
+  const userMessagesByText = new Map<
+    string,
+    Array<{ id: string; index: number; imageCount: number }>
+  >()
   for (const [index, message] of messages.entries()) {
     messageIndexById.set(message.id, index)
     if (message.role !== 'user') {
@@ -239,9 +248,10 @@ export function findLandedUnconfirmedSends(
     // A marker-only turn keys both ways: '' claims it for a caption-less image
     // send, and its literal text claims it for a send of that same text.
     const literalKey = isImageSource ? key : (nativeChatUserMessageMatchText(message) ?? key)
+    const imageCount = nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount(message)
     for (const candidateKey of literalKey === key ? [key] : [key, literalKey]) {
       const current = userMessagesByText.get(candidateKey) ?? []
-      current.push({ id: message.id, index })
+      current.push({ id: message.id, index, imageCount })
       userMessagesByText.set(candidateKey, current)
     }
   }
@@ -257,7 +267,12 @@ export function findLandedUnconfirmedSends(
     }
     const echo = userMessagesByText
       .get(entry.normalizedText)
-      ?.find((message) => message.index > tailIndex && !claimedMessageIds.has(message.id))
+      ?.find(
+        (message) =>
+          message.index > tailIndex &&
+          message.imageCount >= entry.imageCount &&
+          !claimedMessageIds.has(message.id)
+      )
     if (echo) {
       claimedMessageIds.add(echo.id)
       landed.push(entry)
diff --git a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts
index 658252d3ff8..6196b6c725c 100644
--- a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts
+++ b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts
@@ -7,10 +7,11 @@ export {
   imageSourcePathFromText,
   hasImagePromptMarker,
   isImageSourceUserTurn,
+  nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount,
   nativeChatUserMessageMatchText,
+  nativeChatUserTextMatchText,
   normalizeImageTranscriptMessages,
   normalizeNativeChatUserText,
-  normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback,
   normalizedNativeChatUserMessageText,
   stripImagePromptMarker
 } from '../../../src/shared/native-chat-image-transcript-markers'
diff --git a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts
index c8aef152b3a..77ad99005ba 100644
--- a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts
+++ b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 // an incomplete multi-image echo is allowed to do to the local previews.
 
 import { createElement } from 'react'
-import { act, create, type ReactTestRenderer } from 'react-test-renderer'
+import { act, create } from 'react-test-renderer'
 import { afterEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
 import {
   isImageRefBlock,
@@ -29,12 +29,14 @@ function userTextMessage(id: string, text: string): NativeChatMessage {
 }
 
 describe('mobile literal image-marker turns', () => {
-  let renderer: ReactTestRenderer | null = null
+  let updateRenderer: (messages: NativeChatMessage[]) => void = () => {}
+  let unmountRenderer = (): void => {}
   let state: DraftState | null = null
 
   afterEach(() => {
-    act(() => renderer?.unmount())
-    renderer = null
+    act(unmountRenderer)
+    updateRenderer = () => {}
+    unmountRenderer = () => {}
     state = null
   })
 
@@ -51,12 +53,14 @@ describe('mobile literal image-marker turns', () => {
 
   async function mount(): Promise<void> {
     await act(async () => {
-      renderer = create(createElement(Harness, {}))
+      const renderer = create(createElement(Harness, {}))
+      updateRenderer = (messages) => renderer.update(createElement(Harness, { messages }))
+      unmountRenderer = () => renderer.unmount()
     })
   }
 
   async function transcript(messages: NativeChatMessage[]): Promise<void> {
-    await act(async () => renderer?.update(createElement(Harness, { messages })))
+    await act(async () => updateRenderer(messages))
   }
 
   function send(text: string, images?: string[]): void {
@@ -158,4 +162,40 @@ describe('mobile literal image-marker turns', () => {
     expect(rendered.map(rowText)).toEqual(['look'])
     expect(rendered.map(rowImages)).toEqual([['file:///a.jpg']])
   })
+
+  it('keeps a captioned multi-image echo until the transcript accounts for every image', async () => {
+    await mount()
+    send('compare these', ['file:///a.jpg', 'file:///b.jpg', 'file:///c.jpg'])
+
+    const partial = [
+      userTextMessage('source-a', '[Image: source: /tmp/a.png]'),
+      userTextMessage('prompt', 'compare these [Image #1]')
+    ]
+    await transcript(partial)
+
+    expect(rows(partial).map(rowImages)).toEqual([
+      ['/tmp/a.png'],
+      ['file:///a.jpg', 'file:///b.jpg', 'file:///c.jpg']
+    ])
+    expect(rows(partial).map(rowText)).toEqual(['compare these', 'compare these'])
+    expect(state?.imagePreviewsByMessageId).toEqual({})
+
+    const complete = [
+      userTextMessage('source-a', '[Image: source: /tmp/a.png]'),
+      userTextMessage('source-b', '[Image: source: /tmp/b.png]'),
+      userTextMessage('source-c', '[Image: source: /tmp/c.png]'),
+      userTextMessage('complete-prompt', 'compare these [Image #1] [Image #2] [Image #3]')
+    ]
+    await transcript(complete)
+
+    expect(state?.imagePreviewsByMessageId).toEqual({
+      'complete-prompt': ['file:///a.jpg', 'file:///b.jpg', 'file:///c.jpg']
+    })
+    const completeRows = rows(complete)
+    expect(completeRows).toHaveLength(1)
+    expect(completeRows.map(rowText)).toEqual(['compare these'])
+    expect(completeRows.map(rowImages)).toEqual([
+      ['file:///a.jpg', 'file:///b.jpg', 'file:///c.jpg']
+    ])
+  })
 })
diff --git a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-pending-echo.ts b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-pending-echo.ts
index bcf66250872..b5fb6ab4f90 100644
--- a/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-pending-echo.ts
+++ b/mobile/src/session/mobile-native-chat-pending-echo.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import {
-  normalizeNativeChatUserText,
-  normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback
+  nativeChatUserTextMatchText,
+  normalizeNativeChatUserText
 } from './mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers'
 
 export type MobileNativeChatPendingMessage = {
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ export type MobileNativeChatSendOrigin = {
   draftKey: string
   pendingKey: string | null
   normalizedText: string
+  imageCount: number
   baselineOccurrences: number
   baselineTailMessageId: string | null
 }
@@ -25,9 +26,7 @@ type PendingByKey = Record<string, MobileNativeChatPendingMessage[]>
 /** Markers are the agent's only on a send that carried images; otherwise they
  *  are literal text, so `captureSendOrigin` keeps them and so must this. */
 function pendingMatchText(pending: MobileNativeChatPendingMessage): string {
-  return pending.images?.length
-    ? normalizeNativeChatUserText(pending.text)
-    : normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback(pending.text)
+  return nativeChatUserTextMatchText(pending.text, Boolean(pending.images?.length))
 }
 
 export function combineMobileNativeChatPending(
diff --git a/mobile/src/session/use-mobile-native-chat-drafts.ts b/mobile/src/session/use-mobile-native-chat-drafts.ts
index 456ca583ca5..21d70a1a33e 100644
--- a/mobile/src/session/use-mobile-native-chat-drafts.ts
+++ b/mobile/src/session/use-mobile-native-chat-drafts.ts
@@ -7,8 +7,6 @@ import {
   findLandedUnconfirmedSends,
   mergeLandedImagePreviewEchoes,
   migrateImagePreviewMessageIds,
-  normalizeReconcileText,
-  normalizeReconcileTextWithLiteralFallback,
   userTextOccurrenceCounts,
   type UnconfirmedSend
 } from './mobile-native-chat-draft-reconcile'
@@ -21,6 +19,7 @@ import {
   type MobileNativeChatSendOrigin
 } from './mobile-native-chat-pending-echo'
 import { mobileNativeChatScopeKey } from './mobile-native-chat-scope-key'
+import { nativeChatUserTextMatchText } from './mobile-native-chat-image-transcript-markers'
 import { useMobileNativeChatLaunchDraftSeed } from './use-mobile-native-chat-launch-draft-seed'
 import type { MobileNativeChatLaunchDraftSeed } from './use-mobile-native-chat-launch-draft-seed'
 
@@ -135,14 +134,18 @@ export function useMobileNativeChatDrafts(args: {
       }
       // Without an attached image an `[Image #n]` run is the user's own text, so
       // it has to stay in the key the transcript echo will be matched against.
-      const normalizedText = images?.length
-        ? normalizeReconcileText(text)
-        : normalizeReconcileTextWithLiteralFallback(text)
+      const imageCount = images?.length ?? 0
+      const normalizedText = nativeChatUserTextMatchText(text, imageCount > 0)
       return {
         draftKey,
         pendingKey,
         normalizedText,
-        baselineOccurrences: countUserTextOccurrences(messagesRef.current, normalizedText),
+        imageCount,
+        baselineOccurrences: countUserTextOccurrences(
+          messagesRef.current,
+          normalizedText,
+          imageCount
+        ),
         baselineTailMessageId: messagesRef.current.at(-1)?.id ?? null
       }
     },
@@ -207,6 +210,7 @@ export function useMobileNativeChatDrafts(args: {
         pendingKey: origin.pendingKey,
         text,
         normalizedText: origin.normalizedText,
+        imageCount: origin.imageCount,
         baselineTailMessageId: origin.baselineTailMessageId,
         deadline: null
       }
@@ -299,17 +303,14 @@ export function useMobileNativeChatDrafts(args: {
       const landedCounts = userTextOccurrenceCounts(messages)
       // Image-only source-turn counts stay stable across reruns and ignore paginated history.
       const next = current.filter((item) => {
-        if (landedImagePendingIds.has(item.id)) {
-          return false
-        }
         // Keep image echoes until their local preview reaches the authoritative message.
         if (item.images?.length) {
-          return true
+          return !landedImagePendingIds.has(item.id)
         }
         return item.text.trim() === ''
           ? countImageSourceTurnsAfter(messages, item.baselineTailMessageId) <
               item.expectedOccurrence
-          : (landedCounts.get(normalizeReconcileTextWithLiteralFallback(item.text)) ?? 0) <
+          : (landedCounts.get(nativeChatUserTextMatchText(item.text, false)) ?? 0) <
               item.expectedOccurrence
       })
       if (next.length === current.length) {
diff --git a/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts b/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts
index 65c137f9f0c..d530a3a0059 100644
--- a/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts
+++ b/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-literal-marker-echo.test.ts
@@ -124,4 +124,38 @@ describe('literal image-marker turns in native chat', () => {
     expect(rowText(rows[0]!)).toBe('')
     expect(rowImagePaths(rows[0]!)).toEqual(['/tmp/a.png'])
   })
+
+  it('keeps a captioned multi-image echo until the transcript accounts for every image', () => {
+    const pending: NativeChatPendingSend[] = [
+      {
+        id: 'p1',
+        text: 'compare these',
+        imagePaths: ['/tmp/a.png', '/tmp/b.png', '/tmp/c.png'],
+        sentAt: 100
+      }
+    ]
+    const transcript = [
+      userMessage('source-a', '[Image: source: /tmp/a.png]'),
+      userMessage('prompt', 'compare these [Image #1]')
+    ]
+
+    const rows = renderedUserRows(transcript, pending)
+
+    expect(rows.map(rowText)).toEqual(['compare these', 'compare these'])
+    expect(rows.map(rowImagePaths)).toEqual([
+      ['/tmp/a.png'],
+      ['/tmp/a.png', '/tmp/b.png', '/tmp/c.png']
+    ])
+
+    const complete = [
+      userMessage('source-a', '[Image: source: /tmp/a.png]'),
+      userMessage('source-b', '[Image: source: /tmp/b.png]'),
+      userMessage('source-c', '[Image: source: /tmp/c.png]'),
+      userMessage('complete-prompt', 'compare these [Image #1] [Image #2] [Image #3]')
+    ]
+    const completeRows = renderedUserRows(complete, pending)
+    expect(completeRows).toHaveLength(1)
+    expect(rowText(completeRows[0]!)).toBe('compare these')
+    expect(rowImagePaths(completeRows[0]!)).toEqual(['/tmp/a.png', '/tmp/b.png', '/tmp/c.png'])
+  })
 })
diff --git a/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-pending-occurrence.ts b/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-pending-occurrence.ts
index b455be57dc3..a3dd2706406 100644
--- a/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-pending-occurrence.ts
+++ b/src/renderer/src/components/native-chat/native-chat-pending-occurrence.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,9 @@
 import {
+  nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount,
   nativeChatUserMessageMatchText,
+  nativeChatUserTextMatchText,
   normalizeNativeChatUserText,
-  normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback
+  normalizedNativeChatUserMessageText
 } from '../../../../shared/native-chat-image-transcript-markers'
 import { isImageRefBlock, type NativeChatMessage } from '../../../../shared/native-chat-types'
 
@@ -25,36 +27,47 @@ export function normalizeNativeChatPendingText(text: string): string {
 function nativeChatPendingMatchText(
   pending: Pick<NativeChatPendingOccurrence, 'text' | 'imagePaths'>
 ): string {
-  return pending.imagePaths?.some(Boolean)
-    ? normalizeNativeChatPendingText(pending.text)
-    : normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback(pending.text)
+  return nativeChatUserTextMatchText(pending.text, Boolean(pending.imagePaths?.some(Boolean)))
+}
+
+function nativeChatTextContentKey(text: string, imageCount: number): string {
+  return imageCount > 0 ? `text:${text}\0images:${imageCount}` : `text:${text}`
 }
 
 export function nativeChatPendingContentKey(
   pending: Pick<NativeChatPendingOccurrence, 'text' | 'imagePaths'>
 ): string {
   const text = nativeChatPendingMatchText(pending)
-  if (text) {
-    return `text:${text}`
-  }
   const imagePaths = pending.imagePaths?.filter(Boolean) ?? []
+  if (text) {
+    return nativeChatTextContentKey(text, imagePaths.length)
+  }
   return imagePaths.length > 0 ? `images:${JSON.stringify(imagePaths)}` : 'empty'
 }
 
-function nativeChatUserMessageContentKey(message: NativeChatMessage): string | null {
+function nativeChatUserMessageContentKeys(message: NativeChatMessage): readonly string[] {
   if (message.role !== 'user') {
-    return null
+    return []
   }
-  const text = nativeChatUserMessageMatchText(message) ?? ''
-  if (text) {
-    return `text:${text}`
+  const keys = new Set<string>()
+  const matchText = nativeChatUserMessageMatchText(message) ?? ''
+  if (matchText) {
+    keys.add(nativeChatTextContentKey(matchText, 0))
   }
-  const imagePaths = message.blocks
-    .filter(isImageRefBlock)
-    .map((block) => block.path)
-    .filter((path): path is string => Boolean(path))
-  const key = nativeChatPendingContentKey({ text: '', imagePaths })
-  return key === 'empty' ? null : key
+  const imageCount = nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount(message)
+  const imageText = normalizedNativeChatUserMessageText(message)
+  if (imageText && imageCount > 0) {
+    keys.add(nativeChatTextContentKey(imageText, imageCount))
+  } else if (imageCount > 0) {
+    const imagePaths = message.blocks
+      .filter(isImageRefBlock)
+      .map((block) => block.path)
+      .filter((path): path is string => Boolean(path))
+    if (imagePaths.length > 0) {
+      keys.add(`images:${JSON.stringify(imagePaths)}`)
+    }
+  }
+  return [...keys]
 }
 
 export function matchingNativeChatUserContentCounts(
@@ -62,8 +75,7 @@ export function matchingNativeChatUserContentCounts(
 ): Map<string, number> {
   const counts = new Map<string, number>()
   for (const message of messages) {
-    const key = nativeChatUserMessageContentKey(message)
-    if (key) {
+    for (const key of nativeChatUserMessageContentKeys(message)) {
       counts.set(key, (counts.get(key) ?? 0) + 1)
     }
   }
@@ -77,8 +89,7 @@ export function advancedNativeChatUserContentCounts(
   const waiting = new Map<string, number>()
   for (const message of messages) {
     if (message.role === 'user') {
-      const key = nativeChatUserMessageContentKey(message)
-      if (key) {
+      for (const key of nativeChatUserMessageContentKeys(message)) {
         waiting.set(key, (waiting.get(key) ?? 0) + 1)
       }
       continue
@@ -180,10 +191,13 @@ export function selectPendingIndicesRepresentedByUserTexts(
   }
   const remaining = pending.map((entry, index) => ({
     index,
-    text: nativeChatPendingMatchText(entry)
+    text: nativeChatPendingMatchText(entry),
+    hasImages: Boolean(entry.imagePaths?.some(Boolean))
   }))
   for (const userText of userTexts) {
-    const open = remaining.filter((entry) => !represented.has(entry.index) && entry.text.length > 0)
+    const open = remaining.filter(
+      (entry) => !entry.hasImages && !represented.has(entry.index) && entry.text.length > 0
+    )
     const gluedCount = countLeadingPendingTextsGluedToUserText(
       open.map((entry) => entry.text),
       userText
diff --git a/src/shared/native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts b/src/shared/native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts
index 9c28e52cc1b..9a0621a41f6 100644
--- a/src/shared/native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts
+++ b/src/shared/native-chat-image-transcript-markers.ts
@@ -48,10 +48,16 @@ export function normalizeNativeChatUserText(text: string): string {
 /** Marker text that stripping would erase entirely is text the user typed
  *  literally — a real marker always rides on an image turn, which normalization
  *  has already folded away by the time echo matching runs. */
-export function normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback(text: string): string {
+function normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback(text: string): string {
   return normalizeNativeChatUserText(text) || text.trim().replace(/\s+/g, ' ')
 }
 
+export function nativeChatUserTextMatchText(text: string, hasImages: boolean): string {
+  return hasImages
+    ? normalizeNativeChatUserText(text)
+    : normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback(text)
+}
+
 function joinedUserText(message: NativeChatMessage): string {
   return message.blocks
     .filter(isTextBlock)
@@ -74,11 +80,7 @@ export function nativeChatUserMessageMatchText(message: NativeChatMessage): stri
     return null
   }
   const joined = joinedUserText(message)
-  const normalized = normalizeNativeChatUserText(joined)
-  if (normalized || message.blocks.some(isImageRefBlock)) {
-    return normalized || null
-  }
-  return normalizeNativeChatUserTextWithLiteralFallback(joined) || null
+  return nativeChatUserTextMatchText(joined, message.blocks.some(isImageRefBlock)) || null
 }
 
 function stripImagePromptMarkersFromTextBlocks(
@@ -132,6 +134,14 @@ export function countImagePromptMarkers(message: NativeChatMessage): number {
   )
 }
 
+export function nativeChatUserMessageImageEvidenceCount(message: NativeChatMessage): number {
+  if (message.role !== 'user') {
+    return 0
+  }
+  const imageRefCount = message.blocks.filter(isImageRefBlock).length
+  return Math.max(imageRefCount, countImagePromptMarkers(message))
+}
+
 /** Claude records image paths as source turns followed by a prompt carrying
  *  image markers. Merge the whole run back into one native user turn. */
 export function normalizeImageTranscriptMessages(