The Law of Ueki

Meet Kousuke Ueki, a middle schooler who gets the power to turn trash into trees. That's it. That's his ability in a battle royale where 100 students are each given a unique supernatural power by God Candidates competing for the throne of the Heavenly World. The last student standing earns a "Blank Talent", the ability to choose any power they want, while their God Candidate becomes the next ruler. Ueki's teacher Kobayashi chose him, and honestly, turning garbage into trees sounds useless compared to what some of these other kids got. But that's where the show gets good. Every fighter has one hyper-specific ability with hard limitations, so battles become about creative problem-solving rather than who can hit harder. Ueki himself isn't motivated by the prize. he just can't stand watching people abuse their powers to hurt others, which makes him weirdly compelling as a protagonist. His classmate Ai Mori gets dragged along as the voice of reason, and their dynamic keeps things grounded even when the fights get wild. If you liked Zatch Bell's tournament structure with its paired fighters, or the inventive power matchups from Hunter x Hunter and Yu Yu Hakusho, this is in that same neighborhood. It's 51 episodes from 2005, animated by Studio Deen, and it balances genuine moral weight with enough humor that it never takes itself too seriously. The power system alone is worth the watch.