[4] Although Mifune is clearly not playing the same man (his name here is Daisaku Sasa, and his personality and background differ in many key respects), the film's title and some of its content connect him to the character, the Ronin with No Name, and the idea of the two iconic jidaigeki characters confronting each other (Machibuse, made in the same year, also stars Mifune in a role similar to that of Yojimbo).

Tired of wandering, he decides to visit his hometown not noticing until later that the townspeople are living in fear of a local yakuza gang.

The youngest son, who also wants the money, hires Yojimbo (Toshiro Mifune) to assassinate him, as he is the boss's top enforcer.

Eventually, another rōnin armed with a double-barreled pistol wanders into town, wanting the bounty on Zatoichi's head.

While Yojimbo makes short work of him, eventually the boy grows tired of his father's apparent unwillingness to hand over the gold and begins to build an army to combat him.