If you loved Zatoichi on the Road, try Zatoichi's Cane Sword
A bridge between a film you've already seen and one most people haven't. Here's what they share, and what the second one does that the first one doesn't.
What they share
Both films are directed by Kimiyoshi Yasuda, and they both carry the bittersweet mood tag, and they sit in Action / Adventure / Drama territory. If that's the register that drew you to Zatoichi on the Road, the second film will land in a comparable space — through a different lens.
bittersweet
What Zatoichi's Cane Sword is
You arrive in Tonda, a town cowed by corruption. You win a small fortune at the gambling house. But local thugs want you gone. Senzo the blacksmith recognizes your cane sword. He says it will soon fail. Director Yasuda finds a stark poetry in the inevitable.

