Mana Sama 13
TuckyX
Shonen series, as with most manga, aren't creator owned series. Mangaka don't have complete power over their series once they have been published by a magazine. Ending a manga series, especially ones published in shonen magazines like Jump, isn't just up to the manga creator. Japanese readers who participate in weekly polls held by each magazine, and the editors of those magazines, factor quite heavily into whether or not a series ends or keeps going. In short, if the readers and editors of Jump want Kishimoto to keep Naruto going, he will most likely have to keep it going.
From a story stand point dragging it out like that is dumb.....It just waters down everything until it's a boring skeleton of its self......Sure it may still be popular but the story is now bland and you can tell the creator is running out of ideas.
I didn't know that most manga creators didn't get to own, or well have creative power over their work after it was published in a magazine. I had heard (but have no substantiating evidence) that Yu Yu Hakusho's creator wanted to end the series much sooner than he got to, but because of fan out cry he had to drag it on as long as he wound up doing.
I'm with Mana Sama that on a story stand point that's a real shame, because yes the original thing just gets watered down. However, it also means that the original idea of the creator might be lost for good... They might have had a really great idea for how to end the series, or just do something really special with it, and if they have limited creative say over their work that option is gone.
If I were to quote a series that I think went on too long (well one that I've actually SEEN at any rate) it would be Inuyasha. I stopped watching when it looked as if the plot were eating itself and just going on in an endless loop. However, I am not sure I can really blame the creator for that anymore now am I?