"Virgo" departed the New Hebrides on 13 November in company with a convoy bound for the Gilbert Islands. She arrived off Tarawa Atoll early on the morning of the 20th. While preparing to land marines on Betio Island, "Virgo" was straddled by four shells from a Japanese shore battery. However, air strikes and counter battery fire quickly silenced the offender, and "Virgo" resumed landing operations. She remained offshore while the Marines carried out their bloody struggle to wrest control of the atoll from a well-fortified enemy. During that struggle and while the other islands of the atoll were cleared, "Virgo" remained in the vicinity of Tarawa. On 28 November, she cleared the Gilberts on her way to Hawaii. The attack cargo ship arrived in Pearl Harbor on 7 December. During the following six weeks, she practiced amphibious operations in the Hawaiian Islands in preparation for "Operation Flintlock", the assault and occupation of atolls in the Marshall Islands.