Musashi was Japan's most famous samurai swordsman, from the time of Bushido. He is legendary in Japan for a large number of exploits. This book (or series of five if you get the paperbacks) is a telling of the (legendary) biography. It is authentically Japanese, and makes a dramatic contrast to Clavell's Shogun. (The timeframes overlap; Musashi actually fought (losing side) at the battle of Sekigahara, which ends Shogun.) If there's a better samurai story, I don't know of it, and the Musashi legend is as good as any western.

This reads fast and fun. The writing is fairly plain (very well could be the translation) but the story is so good, it just doesn't matter. Give this a go.

Note Musashi himself wrote a book on strategy, called Book of Five Rings.

This is another semi-biography, semi-fictional account. Taiko was the ugly peasant who rose through the Japanese aristocracy and temporarily unified Japan through guile, intelligence, wit, and courage.

This book is not as compelling to the westerner as Musashi. It is good, but it's length and detail get to be a bit much. Read it if you have interest in the topic, but not if you expect it to suck you in from an ignorant stance.