Guru Dronacharya stepped into the arena's center, his white robes flowing, his voice loud and clear. "People of Hastinapur! Now, the big fight—Duryodhan against Yudhishthir!"
The crowd roared, shaking the ground. Duryodhan marched in, a lion in dark gold armor, his mace shining like a storm. Yudhishthir followed, calm in white, his spear glowing softly. They faced each other, eyes full of respect but ready to fight, with Hastinapur's future on the line.
Duryodhan lifted his mace, grinning. "Big brother, let's show 'em what Kurus can do!"
Yudhishthir nodded, smiling. "Duryodhan, let's honor our family."
The fight kicked off like a South Indian movie—wild and fierce. Yudhishthir's spear spun fast, hitting with perfect aim, each move smooth like he was teaching a lesson.
Duryodhan swung his mace hard, smashing the ground, making it shake. Sparks flew as spear hit mace, Yudhishthir dodging Duryodhan's heavy blows.
"Yudhishthir's too quick!" a noble yelled.
Duryodhan growled, swinging wide, forcing Yudhishthir to jump back, his spear cracking. The crowd shouted,
"Duryodhan! Yudhishthir!"
Yudhishthir struck Duryodhan's shoulder, but Duryodhan's power was too much. With a huge swing, he knocked the spear away, sending Yudhishthir to his knees.
"Duryodhan! Duryodhan!"
the crowd screamed. Dushala clapped, shouting,
"Dury bhaiya, you're a beast!"
Bhishma nodded, saying softly, "Good fight."
Vidur frowned, and Shakuni's grin grew mean.
Yudhishthir stood, smiling. "Great job, brother." Duryodhan helped him up, their friendship strong.
Anupriya gasped, nudging Rudra. "Shiva, that was amazing!....Hmm But why do you look angry?"
Rudra had a small frown, his eyes heavy with some thinking. He turned to Anupriya, giving a cheeky smile.
"Angry? Nah, I'm just mad you're cheering for them and not me, Anu!"
Anupriya's face turned red, her eyes dropping. "Sh-Shiva, stop it!" she mumbled, shy, her heart skipping.
Rudra laughed, but Subhadra, watching from the stands, felt her heart sink. Krishna's teasing rang in her ears—she knew she had to act fast, or she'd lose her chance with Rudra.
'I need to do something', she thought, her mind set.
Dronacharya's voice rang out. "Next up, Duryodhan versus Bheem!"
The crowd went wild, jumping and screaming. Bheem stomped in, a giant with a huge mace, grinning like a storm ready to break.
Duryodhan faced him, mace ready, their rivalry big but friendly. This wasn't just a fight—it was a clash of giants, a show to remember forever.
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To get why this fight's so huge, let's clear up their powers, since lots of folks get confused about Bheem and Duryodhan in the Mahabharat.
Bheem, son of Vayu, got a blessing from Naga King Vasuki a boon of "Strength of Ten Thousand Elephants."
In our story, even without poisoned kheer incident, Niyati played its trick—Bheem nearly drowned in a river, and Vasuki saved him, giving him this power.
But first you have to understand the Elephant in 'Strength of ten Thousand Elephants'. "elephants" isn't literal; it's a metaphor.
Hastinapur means the "city of elephants," here its citizens (adult mens) are compared to Elephant.
So, Bheem's boon means he's as strong as ten thousand grown men—crazy powerful, right???
But how does Duryodhan, with no godly parent or blessing, keep up?Here's the deal:
Duryodhan's dad, Dhritarashtra, was born with the strength of one hundred thousand Elephants—ten times Bheem's power! He's blind, so elders ignored him, and he never learned how to use it fully.
Gandhari, Duryodhan's mom and a big Shiva devotee, asked for a boon: "Give me hundred sons as strong as my husband."
That means all Kauravas should be as strong as Dhritarashtra—each with the power of one hundred thousand men. But things went wrong.....
After two years of pregnancy, Hastinapur's elders and Dhritarashtra's affair with a maid pushed Gandhari to give birth early, delivering a lump of flesh.
Later Rishi Vyas split it into 101 parts and put them in ghree pota to grow into the Kauravas.
Those two years weren't enough for fully mature the 100 sons with same quality as their father, but Duryodhan, the strongest, must at least have got the strength of ten thousand men (assumption)—same as Bheem. That's why he's the only one who can fight Bheem hand-to-hand.
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Back to the Tournament:
The fight started with a bang, their maces crashing like thunder, the ground cracking under their feet.
Bheem's swings were like a tornado, each hit shaking the arena.
"Bheem's a monster!" a guy in the crowd yelled.
Duryodhan matched him, his mace smashing back, sparks flying like fireworks.
The crowd cheered, "Bheem! Duryodhan!"
Bheem's raw power cracked Duryodhan's arm guard, but Duryodhan, trained smart in Gurukul, dodged and hit Bheem's ribs, making him grunt.
"Duryodhan's got moves!" a warrior shouted.
Their maces broke from the crazy force, and it turned into a fistfight—pure, wild, like a South Indian action scene.
Bheem's punches were like hammers, slamming Duryodhan's chest. Duryodhan, quicker and smarter, slipped past Bheem's wild swings, landing hard hits to Bheem's jaw and gut.
They wrestled, blood and sweat flying, the crowd screaming, "Bheem! Duryodhan!"
Bheem's all muscle, no brains, and Duryodhan used that—faking a punch, then slamming his knee into Bheem's stomach, followed by a brutal elbow to his back. Bheem crashed down, gasping....
"Duryodhan! Duryodhan!"
the arena roared. Bheem got up, grinning. "You're tough, Duryodhan!"
Duryodhan laughed, pulling him up, their bond shining. Dushala cheered, "Dury bhaiya, you're the best!"
Bhishma smiled, but Vidur looked worried, and Shakuni's grin was pure poison.
Dronacharya shouted, "Now, the last fight of the day—Duryodhan against Arjun!"
The crowd exploded, screaming with excitement. Arjun walked in, his bow humming, his eyes sharp like a hawk's, cool and deadly.
Duryodhan stood ready, mace in hand, fearless, set to take on the best archer. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the epic showdown.
But Rudra's frown stayed, his eyes heavy with something dark—Anger.
Krishna looked at him, his smile knowing, while Subhadra's heart pushed her forward, ready to fight for what she felt.
As Arjun and Duryodhan stared each other down, the arena buzzed, destiny waiting to unfold.
Word Count: 1007