Duryodhana was allied with Susharman, king of Trigarta and an enemy of King Virata.

"We should attack Virata now," said Susharman, "and steal his cattle! Without Kichaka to lead his army, Virata will be defenseless."

This plan delighted Duryodhana, and he launched an attack immediately.

Virata commanded his young son, Prince Uttara, to defend the kingdom, but Uttara did not even have a charioteer.

"I will be your charioteer," said Brihannala, and Uttara burst out laughing. "You are the dancing teacher!" he scoffed. "I need a warrior to escort me."

"Trust me," said Brihannala. "I will carry you to victory."

Brihannala then drove straight to the cremation grounds.

"Fool!" Uttara shouted. "What are you doing?"

"Preparing for victory," he replied, opening the bundle of weapons. "Behold, the Gandiva bow! And I am Prince Arjuna."

"Forgive me," said Uttara, astonished. "I will drive the chariot."

Arjuna then blew his conch, and Drona recognized the sound.

"It's Arjuna," he exclaimed. Then he turned to Duryodhana. "Sire, you should return to Hastinapura. Now is not the time for you to fight the Pandavas."

"Now is exactly the time!" replied Duryodhana.

And so the Kauravas prepared to face Arjuna and Virata's army in battle.

The thirteenth year of exile had ended at midnight, and Duryodhana had not found the Pandavas in time, which only made him more determined to defeat them in battle. He sent Karna against Arjuna; they fought fiercely, and Karna finally left the field drenched in his own blood.

Arjuna then used a mantra to put the Kauravas to sleep and commanded Prince Uttara to strip their clothes to take as trophies.

Back at the palace, Arjuna resumed his identity as Brihannala.

"Take the trophies to your father and tell him you won the battle," he said, and Uttara smiled gratefully.

"What say you, Kanka?" King Virata asked his dicing partner. "Isn't my son Uttara a remarkable warrior?"

"Indeed, my lord!" replied Yudhishthira. "Although his eunuch charioteer is even more remarkable."

Enraged, Virata threw the dice at Yudhishthira, striking him in the forehead and drawing blood. Draupadi rushed to catch every drop, knowing that death awaited anyone who spilled Yudhishthira's blood to the ground.

Uttara was shocked, aware as he was now of Yudhishthira's identity. "Take care with that old brahmin," he warned his father. "He might curse you."

The king apologized, and Yudhishthira said soothingly, "It is already forgotten, sire."

Soon after the cattle-raid, King Virata was surprised to see Kanka sitting on the royal throne, with the cook and the dancing teacher beside him, plus the cowherd and a stableboy, and even his wife's maid, dressed up in royal robes.

Suddenly, it all made sense. "King Yudhishthira!" he exclaimed, bowing.

"Our exile is over," Yudhishthira said, smiling. "We hid ourselves here for the thirteenth year."

Virata then offered his daughter, Uttarai, Uttara's sister, in marriage to Arjuna, but Arjuna proposed instead that his son Abhimanyu marry the princess. Thus King Virata became an ally of the Pandavas by marriage.

Krishna rejoiced at the wedding of Uttarai and Abhimanyu, the son of his sister Subhadra. Although he was young, Abhimanyu was an accomplished warrior. He had begun his training already in the womb, listening as his father discussed battle strategies and formations with Krishna. Abhimanyu remembered everything, and he would use his knowledge in the coming war.

"I have sent word to Duryodhana," Yudhishthira told the guests, "asking him to return our half of the kingdom. Let us all now hope for peace."

"Though we must also be ready for war," Krishna added, and then he went home to Dwaraka.

Although Duryodhana and Karna advocated for war, King Dhritarashtra decided to send his charioteer Sanjaya to Yudhishthira with an offer of peace.

"I too desire peace," Yudhishthira told Sanjaya. "I only ask for Indraprastha, the city that my brothers and I built in the wilderness. Give us back what is ours, and there will be no war."

"You ask only for what is right," said Sanjaya. "But I am afraid that Duryodhana will refuse."

"Then give us just five villages," said Yudhishthira, "one for each son of Pandu. That will be enough. Take that message to the Kauravas in Hastinapura."

When Sanjaya returned from meeting with Yudhishthira, King Dhritarashtra was uncertain what to do and asked his brother Vidura for advice.

"You must disown Duryodhana," Vidura told him, "as ill omens at his birth foretold. Although he is your son, he is no better than a viper. Yudhishthira is a worthy heir, righteous and true to his word. Let Yudhishthira rule the kingdom. That is the only way you will know peace."

"I realize you are right," Dhritarashtra admitted, "but I am strapped to Time's wheel; it turns me, and I cannot escape."

And so King Dhritarashtra rejected Vidura's advice.

As war loomed, Arjuna went to Dwaraka to ask Krishna for help, and Duryodhana did the same. Krishna was asleep when they arrived; Duryodhana sat at the head of Krishna's bed, and Arjuna sat reverently at Krishna's feet.

When Krishna awoke, he saw Arjuna first, and then Duryodhana.

"I have my armies to offer," said Krishna, "and I offer myself, but not as a warrior. Let Arjuna choose first, as I saw him first."

"I choose you," Arjuna said without hesitation.

Duryodhana rejoiced because he also got what he wanted: armies of Yadava warriors who would fight on his side.

Krishna agreed to be Arjuna's charioteer, while Krishna's army would fight for Duryodhana. Everyone wondered whose side Krishna's brother Balarama would take.

Duryodhana went to Balarama and said, "You must help me defeat the Pandavas! They stopped me from marrying your sister, and your sister's son now plots against me. The Pandavas are your enemies too!"

"Don't listen to him!" countered Bhima. "Your brother Krishna is on our side, as you should be."

Balarama sighed, for he loved them both. "I reject this war," he said. "I will fight on neither side. Only fools reject the possibility of peace."