Quote Originally Posted by AssertnFailure
You can also compare it to team Kakashi...where it's not a team of teacher and pupils, but equally respected shinobi.

I'm sorry but I don't see it as equally respected Shinobi, its Kakashi leading Sakura and Naruto still.

Its still Gai leading the team, even look at how they stand in the Episode its Gai standing forefront others arrayed to the sides of him, its Kakashi in front.

While everyone is making reasons why Neji and Gai are working in same team, the fact that your making reasons means the storytelling simply is not good enough at this extended lifespan of the entire series.

Are we to assume in the time jump that there haven't been graduating classes, are we to assume that the village only has these ninja that we can all name, and the village really depends on them for security. If so then the story fails by having the same teams exist or same people out together on the same mission.

Don't get me wrong they get very small parts/scenes right, the part where kakashi says blind itachi, then the camera switches to where we see Itachi blink as if in reflective thought was perfect, and well drawn to express the unwritten emotion in Itachi's eyes......however we still should reasonably believe Itachi is gonna open multiple cans of whoopass