diff --git a/crates/skate-game/src/retail_render.rs b/crates/skate-game/src/retail_render.rs
index d263c9ea..2b969e62 100644
--- a/crates/skate-game/src/retail_render.rs
+++ b/crates/skate-game/src/retail_render.rs
@@ -22,7 +22,6 @@ fn retail_shader(path: &str) -> ShaderRef {
 impl Plugin for RetailRenderPlugin {
     fn build(&self, app: &mut App) {
         shadow::install(app);
-        shadow_visibility::install(app);
         exposure::install(app);
         if std::env::var_os("SKATE_WEATHERING_COMPARE").is_some_and(|v| v == "1") {
             app.add_systems(Update, compare_weathering);
@@ -41,9 +40,10 @@ impl Plugin for RetailRenderPlugin {
             MaterialPlugin::<RetailSkyMaterial>::default(),
         ));
     }
-    fn finish(&self, app: &mut App) { shadow_visibility::finish(app); }
 }
 
+// Retained for headless experiments; production uses Bevy directional visibility.
+#[cfg(test)]
 #[path = "retail_shadow_visibility.rs"]
 pub(crate) mod shadow_visibility;
 
diff --git a/crates/skate-game/src/retail_shadow_visibility_tests.rs b/crates/skate-game/src/retail_shadow_visibility_tests.rs
index fbee638d..f3546850 100644
--- a/crates/skate-game/src/retail_shadow_visibility_tests.rs
+++ b/crates/skate-game/src/retail_shadow_visibility_tests.rs
@@ -150,7 +150,21 @@ fn indexed_system_matches_upstream_across_changes_and_removal() {
         }
         original.run(&mut world);
         let expected = read(&world);
+        for &entity in &entities {
+            if let Some(mut visibility) = world.get_mut::<ViewVisibility>(entity) {
+                *visibility = ViewVisibility::HIDDEN;
+            }
+        }
         indexed.run(&mut world);
+        for &entity in &entities {
+            if let Some(visibility) = world.get::<ViewVisibility>(entity) {
+                assert_eq!(
+                    visibility.get(),
+                    expected.iter().any(|list| list.contains(&entity)),
+                    "visibility marking at step {step}"
+                );
+            }
+        }
         assert_eq!(read(&world), expected, "step {step}");
     }
     for entity in entities {
@@ -178,6 +192,7 @@ pub(super) fn benchmark_bounds(bounds: Vec<Aabb>) -> serde_json::Value {
     let mut world = World::new();
     let mut index = Index::default();
     let count = bounds.len();
+    let system_bounds = bounds.clone();
     let start = std::time::Instant::now();
     index.rebuild(
         bounds
@@ -247,5 +262,84 @@ pub(super) fn benchmark_bounds(bounds: Vec<Aabb>) -> serde_json::Value {
         }
     }
     let indexed_ms = start.elapsed().as_secs_f64() * 1000.;
-    serde_json::json!({"static_batches":count,"queries":repetitions*frusta.len(),"flat_ms":flat_ms,"indexed_ms":indexed_ms,"build_ms":build_ms,"visible_sets_equal":true,"note":"real University material bounds; representative shadow frusta, single-thread query kernel only, not whole-frame FPS"})
+    serde_json::json!({"full_system":benchmark_systems(system_bounds),"static_batches":count,"queries":repetitions*frusta.len(),"flat_ms":flat_ms,"indexed_ms":indexed_ms,"build_ms":build_ms,"visible_sets_equal":true,"note":"real University material bounds; representative shadow frusta, single-thread query kernel only, not whole-frame FPS"})
+}
+
+fn benchmark_systems(bounds: Vec<Aabb>) -> serde_json::Value {
+    bevy::tasks::ComputeTaskPool::get_or_init(Default::default);
+    let mut world = World::new();
+    world.init_resource::<Index>();
+    let view = world.spawn_empty().id();
+    let center = Vec3::new(330., 133., -710.);
+    let direction = Vec3::new(-0.60385966, 0.73098797, 0.31782088);
+    let frusta: Vec<_> = [5., 10., 30., 100.]
+        .into_iter()
+        .map(|radius| {
+            Frustum::from_clip_from_world(
+                &(Mat4::orthographic_rh(-radius, radius, -radius, radius, 0.1, 400.)
+                    * Mat4::look_at_rh(center + direction * 200., center, Vec3::Y)),
+            )
+        })
+        .collect();
+    for layer in [0, 28] {
+        let mut cascades = CascadesFrusta::default();
+        cascades.frusta.insert(view, frusta.clone());
+        let light = world
+            .spawn((
+                DirectionalLight {
+                    shadows_enabled: true,
+                    ..default()
+                },
+                cascades,
+                CascadesVisibleEntities::default(),
+                RenderLayers::layer(layer),
+            ))
+            .id();
+        world
+            .get_mut::<ViewVisibility>(light)
+            .unwrap()
+            .set_visible();
+    }
+    for aabb in bounds {
+        world.spawn((
+            StaticShadowCaster,
+            Mesh3d::default(),
+            aabb,
+            GlobalTransform::IDENTITY,
+            InheritedVisibility::VISIBLE,
+        ));
+    }
+    // A second view has overlapping cascades, deliberately exercising duplicate
+    // visibility publication, which the old query-only benchmark omitted.
+    let second_view = world.spawn_empty().id();
+    for mut cascades in world.query::<&mut CascadesFrusta>().iter_mut(&mut world) {
+        cascades.frusta.insert(second_view, frusta.clone());
+    }
+    let mut old = bevy::ecs::schedule::Schedule::default();
+    old.add_systems((refresh, check_indexed).chain());
+    let mut upstream = bevy::ecs::schedule::Schedule::default();
+    upstream.add_systems(bevy::light::check_dir_light_mesh_visibility);
+    old.run(&mut world);
+    upstream.run(&mut world);
+    let mut old_times = vec![];
+    let mut upstream_times = vec![];
+    for round in 0..5 {
+        let mut run = |schedule: &mut bevy::ecs::schedule::Schedule| {
+            let start = std::time::Instant::now();
+            for _ in 0..200 {
+                schedule.run(&mut world);
+            }
+            start.elapsed().as_secs_f64() * 1000. / 200.
+        };
+        if round % 2 == 0 {
+            old_times.push(run(&mut old));
+            upstream_times.push(run(&mut upstream));
+        } else {
+            upstream_times.push(run(&mut upstream));
+            old_times.push(run(&mut old));
+        }
+    }
+    old_times.sort_by(f64::total_cmp);
+    upstream_times.sort_by(f64::total_cmp);
+    serde_json::json!({"v9_ms_per_update":old_times[2],"upstream_ms_per_update":upstream_times[2],"note":"complete headless schedules including refresh and deferred writes; real map bounds, fixed representative frusta, two overlapping views, not gameplay FPS"})
 }
diff --git a/crates/skate-game/src/skate_world.rs b/crates/skate-game/src/skate_world.rs
index 7c86dbb9..ce8c6d75 100644
--- a/crates/skate-game/src/skate_world.rs
+++ b/crates/skate-game/src/skate_world.rs
@@ -700,7 +700,7 @@ pub(crate) fn spawn(
         }
         if let Some(material) = retail {
             let material = retail_materials.add(material);
-            commands.spawn((crate::retail_render::shadow_visibility::StaticShadowCaster, Name::new(m.name.clone()), Mesh3d(meshes.add(mesh)), MeshMaterial3d(material), Transform::default()));
+            commands.spawn((Name::new(m.name.clone()), Mesh3d(meshes.add(mesh)), MeshMaterial3d(material), Transform::default()));
             continue;
         }
         // Vertex colours above carry retail decal coordinates, never PBR tint.
diff --git a/docs/cpu-followup-optimizations.md b/docs/cpu-followup-optimizations.md
index aeee8b0e..6bf73905 100644
--- a/docs/cpu-followup-optimizations.md
+++ b/docs/cpu-followup-optimizations.md
@@ -83,3 +83,39 @@ system-only DLL imports were verified without running gameplay. EXE SHA-256:
 v8 for comparison. The new capture is armed until F9 and records 20 seconds.
 Existing compiler warnings remain. Runtime appearance and FPS acceptance are
 pending the user's test; the agent's GPU runs were isolated headless tests only.
+
+
+## v10: restore the measured shadow baseline
+
+The completed user captures `university-cpu-bindings-v8-8702-22955.json` and
+`university-cpu-followup-v9-5644-32244.json` each cover 20 seconds without dropped
+trace events. Median frame time improved from 4.578 to 3.976 ms, but mean frame
+time increased from 4.601 to 4.806 ms and p99 from 7.775 to 21.713 ms. These are
+not matched camera routes; neither the aggregate improvement nor the hitches
+can be attributed conclusively to a particular change.
+
+Directional shadow system plus deferred-command time increased from approximately
+0.525 + 0.036 = 0.561 ms/frame in v8 to 0.573 + 0.243 = 0.816 ms/frame in v9.
+The indexed implementation repeats visibility publication across cascade lists.
+A candidate using a reused entity set and a bulk mutable query passed visibility
+parity tests but did not improve a complete headless schedule benchmark: 0.0610
+versus 0.0590 ms/update for v9. That candidate was discarded.
+
+The same fixture measured upstream at 0.1410 ms/update, which disagrees with the
+relative result in gameplay. It uses actual University bounds but fixed frusta,
+two overlapping views, no moving casters and an otherwise idle ECS schedule.
+This makes it useful for detecting local overhead, not choosing the fastest
+production path or predicting FPS. The inventory now includes full schedule
+measurements, including deferred writes, alongside the older query-only kernel.
+
+v10 restores upstream Bevy directional shadow visibility by removing the custom
+system installation/replacement and the retail entity marker. The index remains
+compiled only for headless tests and experiments. Material resource reuse,
+controller metadata caching and the v8 bindless shader fix remain active.
+Shadow geometry, quality and distance are unchanged. This is a conservative
+return to the earlier measured path, not a claim that it resolves every hitch.
+
+Visibility parity tests now also reset and verify per-entity ViewVisibility after
+each lifecycle change, in addition to comparing cascade membership. The private
+v10 launcher is `TRACE-UNIVERSITY-SHADOW-FIX.bat`; v8 and v9 remain available.
+A matched user capture is required to determine the actual frame-time effect.