Mountbatten and Slim worked in different command worlds

What was the working relationship between Lord Mountbatten and William Slim during the Second World War?

They had little need for a close working relationship because Mountbatten handled the political and theater-level problems of Southeast Asia while Slim directed the Burma campaign.

Mountbatten's political and theatre-level responsibilities in Southeast Asia kept much of his work separate from Slim's direction of the Burma campaign. In this assessment, their duties rarely required the sustained collaboration of officers working together in one headquarters. Mountbatten devoted more attention to his immediate circle and fellow destroyer officers. That loyalty could give those officers political protection, without making him central to Slim's day-to-day command.